Chateau Miranda – A Haunting Memory (History & Travel Tips)

Château Miranda, also known as Château de Noisy, was a striking 19th-century Neo-Gothic residence near Celles in Belgium’s province of Namur. Built for the Liedekerke-Beaufort family from 1866, it became famous much later as an abandoned castle before demolition began in 2016 and was completed in 2017.

If that is what you are thinking, you would be right. This picturesque castle was once home to the Count and Countess Liedekerke de Beaufort and their family. The castle interior has majestic arched hallways, lavish wooden staircases, and ballrooms.

Frequently Asked Questions

Early History

The family’s connection to the site is usually traced to the upheavals of the French Revolutionary period. The Liedekerke-Beaufort family left their earlier residence at Château de Vêves and later established themselves near Celles. Decades afterward, their descendants commissioned a new country residence on the estate that became Château Miranda.

The old version of this story is difficult to document precisely, so it is safer not to attach a specific 1792 flight date or a simplified account of the French Revolution to the family’s move. What is well established is that Château Miranda itself was a much later 19th-century project, begun in 1866.

In 1866 the Liedekerke-Beaufort family commissioned English landscape architect Edward Milner to design the new residence. Construction continued for decades: Milner died in 1884 before the work was finished, and the château was completed in stages, with the distinctive clock tower finished in 1907.

The Liedekerke-Beaufort family used the château until the Second World War, when German forces occupied the property. Accounts of fighting associated with the Battle of the Bulge in the surrounding Ardennes are common, but claims about specific combat on the château grounds are poorly documented and should be treated cautiously.

The wider Dinant and Meuse region was strategically important during the fighting in the Ardennes, but that does not by itself prove that Château Miranda was a combat site.

Current Times

Orphanage/Holiday Camp

Castle Miranda was taken over by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS) in 1950 and renamed Castle Noisy. It was used as an orphanage and a holiday camp for sickly children of the railway’s employees to breathe in fresh air, eat healthy food, and exercise.

The Castle Noisy could provide 200 children with a holiday experience that included fresh air, activities such as a playground, a swimming pool, and a small football pitch. The children were mostly Belgian, speaking French and Flemish. During the holiday season, children from Italy also frequented the camp.

The children’s center operated on a structured institutional schedule. Later recollections from some former residents describe the experience negatively, but those personal accounts should not be generalized into an established history of systematic abuse without stronger documentation.

Derelict and Demolished

By 1991 Château de Noisy had been abandoned as the cost of maintaining the enormous property became unsustainable. The empty building then deteriorated rapidly through weather, vandalism, structural decay and fire damage. Contemporary reporting before demolition also noted serious dry-rot problems and the growing safety risk posed by the ruin.

Despite a desperate search for an investor none was found, and the castle became a derelict building that could be dangerous to visitors that parked at the bottom of the hill and walked to the building to explore. This resulted in the Castle Miranda becoming an attraction in the field of “Urban Exploration”, which essentially meant that members of the public who were photographers, ghost-hunters, and thrill-seekers went into derelict buildings to explore.

By the 2010s the owners concluded that restoration was financially unrealistic and the unstable structure had become a serious safety concern. Demolition began in late October 2016 despite preservation campaigns and continued in stages until 2017, when the château was completely removed. Contemporary reports put the potential restoration cost in the tens of millions of euros.

Interesting Chateau Miranda Facts

• Hannibal, the television series, was filmed at Castle Noisy in part. It is referred to as Lecter Castle in the series.
  
• The Belgian film “Het huis Anubis en de wraak van Arghus” (The House of Anubis and the Revenge of Arghus) was also filmed on location at Castle Noisy.
  
• While being used as an orphanage and holiday camp, the children were given postcards to send home to their parents with a photograph of the Castle. Some of the children reported horrid stories of neglect and abuse.
  
• The abandoned château became internationally known among urban explorers before demolition.
  
• Ghost stories and reports of strange sounds circulated among urban explorers, but these are folklore rather than verifiable historical facts.
  
• Castle Miranda had 500 windows after the completion and extensions completed by French architect Pelchner.
  
• The original architect, Edward Milner, died in 1884 before the château was completed; later work continued under other designers until the early 20th century.
  
• The central clock tower remained working until late into the 20^th century despite no one knowing when it was last serviced!