Westmalle Castle

[1] The origin of Westmalle Castle goes back to a large fortified farm, the Mansus de Trisco (Dutch: Hoeve Ten Driessche) around 1100 and it stayed that way until 1449.

In 1449 the estate was sold by the Duke of Brabant to Henri van der Moelen, who was a member of the city council of Antwerp.

His son Peter van der Moelen succeeded him and it was his grandson, Evrard de Cottereau, who obtained the estate in 1530.

In 1702 the castle was claimed by the creditors, but the courts returned the property to lady Moytray, the widow of de Cottereau.

After Christiane van der Straten (née de Lannoy) died at the age of 102 the castle was sold to Stichting Kempens landschap, a foundation for the protection of flemish landscapes and heritage.