In 1912, Henri Francotte, coming from a wealthy family owning the famous "Copper and Zinc" factory in Liège, professor at the University of Liège and a much-appreciated mayor of Dalhem, made the building erected in the 17th-century Mosan Renaissance style.
The owner, to whom we owe several major works in the region, unfortunately did not benefit from them very much as he died in 1918, exhausted by the war. He then bequeathed his castle to his son Henri.
The latter, who was a priest, gave the place a religious flavour, as is still evident from the inscriptions on the chimneys. When the wife of the former mayor died in 1947, the castle was entrusted to the bishop of Liège, which created the "Maison de la Charité" to accommodate the needy, young people and disabled.
From 1999, the organisation was reviewed. The estate became part of the Visé deanery and a new non-profit association, "Château de Dalhem", was formed with the aim of promoting this unique heritage and the social and event vocation of the place, in a spirit of openness.
A new adventure begins...
(© La Libre Belgique 2006 and thanks to the collaboration of the Royal Archaeological and Historical Society of Visé and its region)
