Le château de Méan

Blegny, Belgium, Belgium

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Le château de Méan is an abandoned pleasure castle from the early 18th century located in the village of Saive, part of the commune of Blegny in the Liège province of Belgium, originally built by and long associated with the noble family de Méan de Beaurieux.

It stands on the heights of Cahorday, close to the neighbouring domaine of La Motte and the Château de Bellaire, and consists of a heterogeneous ensemble of buildings around a courtyard, combining a residential brick block with a 1660 fronton displaying the coats of arms of Charles de Méan and Jeanne van der Heyden à Blisia, a square tower on the left, and U-shaped wings that include former farm buildings and an open barn section on the west side.

The site is closely tied to the history of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège, as François de Méan, who later became Prince-Bishop of Liège and was born in 1756, grew up there; the château was partly destroyed during the French Revolution and the wars of the Napoleonic period, and although it remained in the hands of the de Méan family for several generations, it gradually fell out of use and is now left to ruin, with its structures and grounds accessible only as a heritage landmark rather than as a functioning residence.