Photo : Raimond Spekking / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Château de Hierges
Firmly set on a rocky spur, the castle of Hierges watches over the village of the same name, reputed to be one of the most beautiful in the Ardennes. The first fortifications date from 840; the building was destroyed, then restored in the 16th century, before suffering again during the Revolution, after becoming French in 1774.
The curtain walls between the three large towers survive, as does the square tower, facing the present blue-stone residence and the guard tower. The castle contains galleries, a 16th-century well and the oubliettes of the justice tower, while the outbuildings were fitted out in the early 19th century in the old stables. A subtle compromise between military constraints and the splendour of a princely residence, it is a fine example of Mosan Renaissance architecture.
