Château de Gomery

Virton, Belgium, Belgium

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Château de Gomery (also known as Château de Gerlache à Gomery) is located in the village of Gomery, in the municipality of Virton in the Belgian province of Luxembourg, in the southernmost part of Wallonia.

The oldest parts of the castle date from the second half of the 12th century, including its chapel, and Gilles de Gomery resided there at the end of the 14th century before the castle was completely rebuilt between 1601 and 1604 by Paul Bernard de Fontaine into a large square structure with four round corner towers surrounded by water-filled moats.

In April 1761, a fire destroyed the entire castle, and only the north wing was reconstructed with various modifications, while the south wing was demolished in 1817, leaving the north wing, keep, and chapel which are renovated with each generation. 

Since 1726, the castle has been the property of the prestigious de Gerlache family, whose most famous members include Baron Etienne-Constantin de Gerlache (president of the National Congress in 1830), Baron Adrien de Gerlache de Gomery (commander of the Belgian Antarctic expedition 1897-1899 aboard the "Belgica"), and his son Gaston who led the 1957-1959 expedition to King Baudouin Base, making the castle one of the oldest in the Gaume region. 

The castle is classified as protected heritage, remains in the de Gerlache family today (currently owned by Gaston de Gerlache de Gomery, an Antarctic explorer like his father and grandfather), and is open to visitors from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM and 1:30 PM to 5:30 PM, Tuesday through Saturday.