Presles Castle, 19th-century castle in Aiseau-Presles, Belgium.
Presles Castle is a castle in the Belgian village of Presles, part of Aiseau-Presles. An engraved view shows attached buildings of different heights: two tall spires and a square tower with a pointed roof on the left, a long multi-storey house with rows of windows and a smoking chimney in the centre, and two round towers with conical roofs joined by a high dark wall on the right. The complex is enclosed by walls and set behind a formal garden with low hedges, within a rolling, wooded landscape.
Architect Alphonse Balat redesigned the castle in 1851, integrating collaboration with painter François Stroobant who created interior frescoes between 1859 and 1860. The property passed through the hands of several noble families including Rumigny, Haneffe, and Enghien-Havré before becoming the seat of the d'Oultremont family.
The castle is still owned by the d'Oultremont family, descendants of Herman de Lierneux, who bought the estate in 1625. The family had it rebuilt in 1851 by architect Alphonse Balat, and in 1859–1860 the painter François Stroobant decorated the interior with frescoes. Visitors on guided tours can see these frescoes.
The grounds are expansive and require comfortable shoes for walking through the park and outdoor areas. Access to specific interior rooms may vary seasonally, so it helps to check in advance which areas are currently open to visitors.
The 1851 rebuilding by Alphonse Balat and the 1859–1860 frescoes by François Stroobant gave the castle its present appearance; Stroobant's paintings are among the interior features visitors are shown on guided tours. The d'Oultremont family, owners since inheriting from Herman de Lierneux, still holds the property.
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