Heers Castle, Medieval castle in Heers, Belgium.
Heers Castle stands at Nieuwe Steenweg 69-71 in Heers, its four brick wings set on a flint base. Horizontal bands and corner quoins of pale marlstone stripe the facades, and the south wing holds a gate from the second half of the 19th century bearing the Desmaisières coat of arms. The north and east wings form the corps de logis, with a heavy rectangular donjon at their corner; the west wing served as service quarters.
The castle was first recorded in 1328 and had to be largely rebuilt around 1500 after it was damaged during the campaigns of Charles the Bold. That rebuilding gave the castle the structure it still has today.
The castle's name comes from the lords of Heers, whose best-known member was Raes van Heers (1418–1477). A path still runs from the castle south to the Sint-Martinuskerk and its churchyard; the viscount walked this way to church into the 1950s, using the side chapel he held in the choir.
The castle stands at Nieuwe Steenweg 69-71 in Heers, with the Sint-Martinuskerk and its cemetery just to the south, linked by a path from the castle. The 5-hectare castle park forms part of a 14-hectare estate and has not been substantially altered since the 17th century. The site is not open to the public; the castle and farm buildings can be viewed from the street.
The castle cellars, filled in during the 20th century, are said to date from the 14th century. The farmyard is entered through a gatehouse built in 1671, and its large three-aisled barn, about 18 metres high with an oak truss, dates from around 1500 and was altered in 1664.
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