Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of the Counts of Lallaing, located in the eponymous city, finds its origins in the 12th century with a castral motte transformed into a fortress. In the 13th century, it became the main fief of the Lallaing family, many of which marked local history. At the end of the Middle Ages, the site was surrounded by a crenellated polygonal courtine, flanked by four cylindrical towers and dominated by a 12th century quadrangular dungeon, redesigned in the 16th century by the addition of sill windows. A small square turret, located at the northwest corner, exceeds the dungeon of two levels.

In the 17th century, the castle passed into the hands of the d'Arenberg family, but the wars under Louis XIV led to its rapid deterioration. In 1904, the estate was sold to Mr. Morel, then sold in 1943 to the Compagnie des Mines d'Aniche. The municipality of Lallaing acquired the site in 1959 and built a new town hall there, retaining only the bridge and the entrance door, now integrated into the municipal park. A pilori, medieval vestige, is also visible.

The remains still standing, including the entrance door classified as Historic Monument in 2003, recall the strategic importance of this castle, once the heart of a powerful seigneury. Croy's albums, with their 15th century gouaches, offer a valuable testimony of his appearance at the height of his history, before the successive destructions that erased most of his structures.

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