Ten Torre Castle

Ten Torre Castle, locally known as Kasteel Ten Torre, lies south of the village of Beernem, in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish region in Belgium. The prefix 'Ten' can be translated as 'at the', while 'Torre' means 'tower'.

Ten Torre Castle was first mentioned in 1353. How this original castle looked is unknown.

The present castle was built in 1845 by order of Hector, Baron Lebailly de Tilleghem, on the site of the former castle.

Around 1895 it was owned by Joseph de Meester de Ravenstein, who employed the architect Stefaan Mortier to restore his castle. Mortier, inspired by the famous French architect Viollet-le-Duc, then constructed the current roof around the roof tower (which is still preserved in the structure). He also constructed the entrance porch with loggia and the open gallery, and converted one of the corner towers into a watchtower. The surrounding park was also laid out and the moat was enlarged.

In 1914, due to the threat of WW I, the de Meester de Ravenstein family, abandoned their castle and fled to the Netherlands. The next couple of years Ten Torre stood empty, until 1917 when a number of German officers took up residence in the castle. Rumor has it that even the German Crown Prince, Field Marshall Rupprecht of Bavaria, stayed at Ten Torre personally. German forces again occupied the castle during WW II. It was damaged in 1945 when it was being shot at by the Allies and, after it had been liberated, also by the Germans.

At present Ten Torre Castle is private property and used as a luxurious holiday residence available only for groups. It can not be visited nor be seen from the public road. A very nice castle.

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