Château de Noisy
THE ABANDONED CASTLE IN BELGIUM
‘Château de Noisy’ is probably the most famous urbex location ever. Many photographers visited this eerie castle to shoot photos. The official name of the castle is ‘Château Miranda’, later named ‘Home de Noisy’.
The first owner of ‘Miranda’ was Count Liedekerke-Beaufort. During the French Revolution, the family Liedekerke-Beaufort had to leave their home, the Castle of Vèves. Consequently, they had to hide and chose a farm outside the village. After the revolution, the farm became a summer residence for the family and finally turned into this iconic building. Construction was completed in 1907 after the clock tower was erected. The castle was designed by the English architect Edward Milner, although he died before seeing its completion.
Home de Noisy
During the Second World War, a small part of the Battle of the Bulge took place on the property. At that time, the Nazis occupied the castle. After the war, inherits of the family leave the castle. In 1950 ‘Château Miranda’ was renamed ‘Home de Noisy’ when it was taken over by the NMBS, the national railway company of Belgium. The railway company used the castle as an orphanage and a holiday camp for sick children. Its function as a children’s camp lasted until the late 1970s. After the 1970s, the castle was used for sport and activity camps for children.
Famous urbex location
In 1991, Château de Noisy was abandoned. The castle has stood empty and completely abandoned since 1991 because the costs to maintain it were too big. However, a search for investors failed. Parts of the structure were heavily damaged in a fire, and many areas of the ceiling are collapsing. Despite this, it’s still a beauty. The castle became the most famous urbex location in Europe. Every weekend, many photographers visit the small village of Celles to see this classic castle. In 2016, the first plans for demolishing came into the local news. Soon the first protest started to save the castle. I visited this castle in 2005 and 2016. Château de Noisy was demolished in 2017 despite the effort of locals to save the site.
