Bioul Castle

Bioul Castle, locally known as Château de Bioul, lies in the village of the same name, in the province of Namur in the Wallonia region in Belgium.

The first castle was built here in the 11th century. It belonged to the Orbais family until the 13th century. In 1349 it was owned by a Gilles de Jauche.

In the 16th century the castle went to the Brandeburg family. They held it until the beginning of the 18th century. In 1554 the castle was ransacked by marauding French troops after which it was rebuilt.

In 1708 Bioul Castle was first acquired by the Bilquin and later the Moreau family. Guillaume-Nicolas de Moreau had the castle rebuilt in 1776. In 1870 it was bought by the Moretus-Plantin family and since 1896 it has been owned by the Vaxelaire family. The Vaxelaire family again rebuilt the castle.

Bioul Castle has been so thoroughly rebuilt a couple of times that nothing remains of its medieval predecessors. The oldest part of the castle is the square Guimaud Tower opposite the entrance gate, it probably dates back to 1620.

In 1914, during World War I, the castle served as the headquarters of Marshal Philippe Pétain for a few days. Because he liked it, he returned for a visit in 1930, together with his protégé Charles de Gaulle.

At present Bioul Castle is private property and serves as a winery. It can only be visited as a guest of the winery but can be seen from the village. A nice château.

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