Croy Castle
Encyclopedia
The castle Croy is currently no longer inhabited but in use as an office. The castle lies in the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 province North Brabant
North Brabant
North Brabant , sometimes called Brabant, is a province of the Netherlands, located in the south of the country, bordered by Belgium in the south, the Meuse River in the north, Limburg in the east and Zeeland in the west.- History :...

, near the village Aarle-Rixtel
Aarle-Rixtel
Aarle-Rixtel is a town in the Dutch municipality of Laarbeek in North Brabant. It lies about 4 km north of Helmond. Since 1997 the castle Croy is part of Aarle-Rixtel.Until 1997, Aarle-Rixtel was a separate municipality.-External links:*...

 which is part of the municipality Laarbeek
Laarbeek
Laarbeek is a municipality in the southern Netherlands. It was formed in 1997 by the former municipalities Beek en Donk, Aarle-Rixtel and Lieshout . Laarbeek is part of the city region 'Samenwerkingsverband Regio Eindhoven', centered around the city of Eindhoven...

. From 1642 until 1968 Croy belonged to the municipality Stiphout
Stiphout
Stiphout is a village in the Dutch province of North Brabant. It is located in the municipality of Helmond, about 2km west of the centre of that city...

 (currently part of the municipality of Helmond
Helmond
Helmond is a municipality and a city in the province of North Brabant in the southern Netherlands.- Quarters and Neighbourhoods :*Quarter 11 Inner City**Neighbourhood 0 Centrum**Neighbourhood 2 Leonardus**Neighbourhood 3 Heipoort...

).

Since 1795 beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...

 is brewed near the castle. Since 2004 the Croy beer is itself brewed in a brewery in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 but the ingredients are grown on the Croy estate. Also there is a herd of Rambouillet
Rambouillet (sheep)
The Rambouillet is also known as the Rambouillet Merino or the French Merino. The development of the Rambouillet breed started in 1786 when Louis XVI purchased over three hundred Spanish Merinos from his cousin, King Charles III of Spain...

-Merino
Merino
The Merino is an economically influential breed of sheep prized for its wool. Merinos are regarded as having some of the finest and softest wool of any sheep...

 sheep on the Croy estate.

History

The oldest parts of the Croy castle were probably build in the 15th century. There is not much know about the history of the castle. Jacob van Croy (Cathedral-lord of Koln
KOLN
KOLN, digital channel 10, is the CBS affiliate in Lincoln, Nebraska. It operates a satellite station, KGIN, on digital channel 11 in Grand Island. KGIN repeats all KOLN programming, but airs separate commercials...

 and Luik) was in 1477 owner of the land, but a house is not mentioned. In the 16th century villages in the neighbourhood were many times demolished, probably also the castle (but this is not recorded).

The last inhabitant was Freule (Lady) Constance van der Brugghen. Her uncle bought Croy in 1772, In 1773 he died and left the castle to his half brother Johan Karel Gideon. He married Margaretha Gertuda Falck and they had three sons and a daughter. In 1820, 1826 and 1864 the sons died. Freule (Lady) Constance van der Brugghen died in 1873 (78 years old) en left the building to municipality of Stiphout with the obligation to use the building for the help of poor elderly people. This was led by the sisters of Geloof, Hoop en Liefde (Belief, Hope and Love). In 1977 the firemen disapprove the house as being a house for elderly people because of the safety regulation.

Research of the castle points that the size was more or less the same all those years. The building history seems complex but not much is know from written sources. Its seems that the original building has been severely damaged. The Cellar, the right wing and the round tower are probably from the beginning of the construction. The last changes (e.g. the entrance and the trapgevels are build in the 18th century.


Many noble families have lived in the castle.

External links

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