Kasteel van Laarne

關於

Laarne Castle (Dutch: Kasteel van Laarne) is a water castle near Laarne, East Flanders in Belgium near to the provincial capital of Ghent. Laarne Castle is situated at an elevation of 3 meters.

Laarne is situated approximately 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) south-east of the major historic city of Ghent which was the capital of the County of Flanders.

Beatrix van Massemen, daughter of Diederik, is explicitly mentioned as the lady of Laarne between 1213 and 1222. She was married to Gerard van Zottegem, the second son of Walter, lord of Zottegem. They had at least ten children. Their son, Giselbrecht van Zottegem, outlived his older brothers and became lord of Ressegem, Leeuwergem, Massemen, Laarne and Kalken. Following his marriage to Mathilde van Bethune, daughter of the lord of Dendermonde, he was granted the lordships of Laarne and Kalken in 1228–1229. According to E. Balthau, he probably had the "hof van Laarne" built shortly afterwards, the forerunner of the castle. Various military activities are known of him. In 1214–1215 he was, with two of his brothers and other Flemish nobles, a mercenary in the service of the English king John Lackland during the rebellion of the English nobles. This would lead to Magna Carta in 1215. In 1217–1218 he took part in the 5th Crusade in Egypt, which would lead to the defeat of the Christian army at Damietta in 1218.

A charter with the mention “int hof te Laerne” from 1294 is the first reference to an actual residence on the spot. The first traces of the current castle were built in the early 14th century by the knight Gerard van Massemen who constructed a gatehouse with a wooden bridge across a moat. He added three round towers and a square keep (donjon) connected by walls shortly afterwards. A private chapel was constructed in the keep in around 1350 and fragments of the original wall paintings survive. A castle is mentioned for the first time in a charter between Gerard van Ressegem, lord of Laarne, and his feudal lord the Count of Flanders. In it, the Count is promised the use of the castle in times of war or uprising. When 20 years later the city of Ghent revolted against the count's authority, the castle was besieged and taken. The traces of fire from 22 September 1382 are still visible. It was not until 1390 that Jan van Massemen, son of Gerard, was able to take possession of his castle again.

In 1426, the domain passed into the hands of Baldwin III de Vos, son of Baldwin II de Vos and Elisabeth van Massemen. He was also lord of Lovendegem, Zomergem and Pollare. The tax on salt from 1449 led to a new uprising against Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy and Count of Flanders. The White Hoods took Laarne, together with Gavere, Poeke and Schendelbeke. The lord of Laarne, Baldwin IV de Vos, was imprisoned in Ghent. An attempt by the Count de Saint Pol to relieve Laarne with a troop of Burgundians failed and 22 of his men fell under the walls of Laarne. A second attempt on 16 December of the same year, by Picard horsemen was more successful. Not long afterwards, wandering troublemakers – known as The Green Tenters – made the region unsafe again. They even managed to occupy Laarne Castle for six years.

內容改寫自 Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。照片來自 Wikimedia Commons.