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Origin and history

The castle-farm of Foisches, known as the Templar Farm, is a former strong house built in the early seventeenth century, later transformed into a farm. Contrary to a widespread belief, he had no connection with the order of the Temple, his name simply coming from the family of Templars, his first owners. The building, organized around a rectangular courtyard and flanked by three corner towers, mixes stone and brick, with rare openings outside, except for large agricultural doors. Its 17th century East façade is distinguished by a sophisticated decoration for the Ardennes: lintels and windows supported by Givet blue stone, connected by bandages, as well as seven arcades in full hanger with bossed harps, resting on columns partially carved of grotesque heads, today hammered.

The location of the castle-farm, at the foot of a hill in Foisches, near the church of Saint Martin, reflects its historical role in this village of the Ardennes, marked by the conflicts between French and Spanish. In 1558, after fighting between Charles Quint's troops and the royals, the captain of Hierges had this strong house built to secure the area. Damaged in 1640 during the attack on Charlemont by Marshal de la Meilleraye, it was restored shortly after, with its adjoining chapel rehabilitated in 1671. After the Revolution, the site became a farm, then housed officers of the Fort de Charlemont in Givet. Ranked a historic monument in 1991, it retains protected elements such as the east and south wing facades and their turrets.

The architecture of the castle-farm illustrates a transition between defensive function and agricultural use, typical of the post-medieval Ardennes. The changes of the 19th and 20th centuries have altered some parts, but the East Wing, with its rare arrangement for the region, bears witness to the influence of local materials (Givet stone, brick) and artisanal know-how. The carved arcades, though degraded, evoke a past where symbols of power and practical utility coexisted. Today, the site embodies both a military, agricultural and architectural heritage, rooted in the turbulent history of this north-eastern border of France.

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