Koen
Google
On the west side of Beaufort are the Beaufort Castles (Les Châteaux de Beaufort): the medieval castle ruin with its robust and imposing walls and towers, and the more refined Renaissance castle. Both castles changed hands frequently and were not always inhabited. Around 1015, construction began on a house surrounded by a fortified wall, marking the beginning of the medieval Beaufort Castle. A hundred years later, the castle was expanded, including a Romanesque keep; the oldest written mention of the Belfurt estate dates from that period (1192). In the late 14th century, the new owners strengthened and expanded the castle for the second time. In 1639, Jean de Beck purchased the castle, which he expanded again, and in 1643 began construction of a new Renaissance castle. The new castle was completed in 1649 and became the owners' main residence. As a result, the medieval castle became uninhabited and by the 19th century was only a ruin used as a quarry. The Renaissance castle changed hands regularly through inheritance, marriage, or sale, and also became uninhabited in the 19th century. In 1893, Henri Even purchased both castles and, together with his father-in-law Joseph Linckels, began restoring the somewhat dilapidated Renaissance castle. Between 1928 and 1934, Edmond Linckels had the rubble and vegetation removed from the old castle ruins, and in 1934, the ruins were opened to the public. In 1981, Anne-Marie Linckels-Vollmer transferred the castles to the Luxembourg state in exchange for a life annuity with the right of residence. A year after her death in 2012, the Renaissance castle was also opened to the public, where visitors could see how the aristocracy lived in comfort. The Beaufort Castles are highly recommended because you visit both a medieval and a Renaissance castle at the same time!
