Havre Castle

Mons, Belgium, Belgium

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Havré Castle (Château d’Havré) is a historic, partly ruined medieval castle in the village of Havré, just outside Mons in the province of Hainaut, Wallonia, Belgium, originally built in the 13th century as a fortified defence post for the town of Mons along the Haine river.

The castle’s earliest traceable date is 1226, and over the centuries it was enlarged and transformed several times by noble families such as the Enghien and especially the influential Croÿ family, who helped turn it from a moated fortress into a prestigious Renaissance‑style residence surrounded by water channels.

The complex is built in sandstone and has a rectangular layout with remaining defensive walls, towers, a distinctive donjon topped with an onion‑shaped dome, and an ogival (pointed‑arch) chapel, all set within a quadrilateral inner courtyard. In 1579 a major fire largely destroyed the castle, and it was rebuilt in the early 17th century under Charles‑Alexandre de Croy, after which it hosted distinguished guests including artists such as Peter Paul Rubens and Van Dyck.