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Origin and history

The Château du Sart is a building located in the district of Sart-Babylone in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, Hauts-de-France. As early as the 13th century, a manor house was mentioned on this site, as evidenced by an act of sale kept in the archives of Loos Abbey. This first mansion preceded by centuries the construction of the present castle, erected in 1740 by the family of Fourmestrales, who owned it but rarely lived.

The castle is associated with an 18-hole golf park at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1908 Gaston Le Blanc acquired land including Wasquehal Fort, and in 1910 the Sart Golf Association was officially established. The castle then serves as Club House, marking its transition from an aristocratic residence to a place dedicated to sports recreation.

During the First World War, the castle housed the precious library of the Van der Cruisse family in Waziers, destroyed by the Germans. This lost cultural heritage highlights the impact of conflicts on historical property. A dovecote from 1761, inspired by the plans of Diderot's Encyclopaedia and Alembert's Encyclopaedia, remains a witness to the utilitarian architecture of the time. Listed in the additional inventory of historical monuments since 1988, it was restored in 2007 and has 1109 bolts.

The site thus illustrates several historical strata: a medieval mansion, an 18th century seigneurial residence, and a modern reconversion into a leisure space, while preserving heritage elements such as the dovecote, symbol of the agricultural practices of the Ancien Régime.

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