The Counts' Castle

The counts were once (in)famous Crusader Knights. It was Philip of the Alsace that upon returning from the Holy Land built this Rock in the 12th Century.

Baldwin IV conquered Constantinople, pillaged it and became emperor. There he also cunningly stole the secret of the Greek Fire. On an expedition against the emperor of Bulgaria, he was captured and spent his last days locked up in a dreary tower. He took his secrets to the grave. His family paid ransome to release the deceased count and built a tomb with splendid effigy in the gatehouse of castle. Beware: Now Baldwins Secret Weapon Guards the Gate!

The counts of Flanders are amongst the wealthiest Peers of France, and play an intricate and risky game of intrigue at the French royal court. The dauphin is the perfect hosta - euh honorable guest in the castle. The other French courtiers have sent their master spy to keep an eye on things.

The Counts' Castle is inspired on the Counts Rock (Gravensteen - Chateau des Comtes) of Ghent (Belgium), a watercastle built in 1180. This castle was built to impress the citizens of the sprawling city of Ghent as they asserted their independence. It was an enforcers castle to show the who's boss. Untill the mid 14th century it was the residence of the Counts of Flanders, it was a courthouse and a prison where people were tortured and recieved cruel medieval punishment. In the 19th century the castle was allotted and sold in parts. The keep housed a factory. By the end of the 19th century, the Ghent citizenry found the situation deplorable. They bought the castle and restored it. It was one of the pearls of the worlds fair of 1913. Today it is a major tourist attraction, with a museum of torture and punishment to remind us of cruel times.

It is built with about 3800 bricks by hand. It is my first MOC since I was 12. It is an oval shaped (technically it is an irregular heptadecagon) and concentrical castle with 7 small towers on the walls including the socalled "dovecot" with a half conical roof, a high keep and a large gatehouse. The castle features a chamber of audiences or court, a camera (the counts chambers where he and the countess had to produce an heir), and an oubliette in the Counts house. It has a gatehouse with a dropgate and two large wooden gates, the one in front with Flemish ironwork. In the upper hall of the gatehouse you'll see the tomb with effigy of Baldwin with the Greek Fire that can be thrown into a machicolation on assailants that would break through the first gate. In the keep there is the hall of arms where the vassals assemble and the high hall, both with large fireplaces.

There is also a version with about 3000 bricks.

The castle is largely built in Romanesque style with a slight Gothic touch in the window of the counts chambers (camera). Large arches and a heavy, datk and broody structure give it a monumental look. The roofs have been designed to look pittoresque and yet add a bit of broodyness. Bricks of diffrent sandstone coulors have been added for further texture. Wooden parapets, towers arches and buttresses add rhythm and accentuate the roundness.

The castle has been designed to have fantastic spaces for play and imagination. I wanted spaces where in playing, one could create ones own dioramas or theatrical scenes.

I hope you like the Counts' castle, please tell me what you think.