202 BELGIUM AND LUXEMBOURG REGION BY REGION

For hotels and restaurants in this region pp269–71 and pp296–7

Namur 8

• The Citadelle
  Route Merveilleuse 64. Tel (081)

654500. 
        

        Easter–Oct: 11am–5pm.

        
        

        & - http://www.citadelle.namur.be
        The strategic value of the
        Champeau hill that rises up
        from the Grognon has been
        recognized since prehistoric
        times. Julius Caesar is said to
        have laid siege to this rock
        to oust the Aduatuci Gauls. It
        has since been fortified and
        embattled on numerous occa-
        sions, most significantly in
        1692, when it was seized by
        the army of French monarch
        Louis XIV. Louis’s great mili-
        tary engineer, Marquis de
        Vauban, then set his stamp
        on the fortress with his signa-
        ture triangular bastions, but it
        was retaken by William III of
        Orange three years later. The
        Citadelle saw action right up
        to the end of World War II,
        and was only fully demilita-
        rized in 1977.
        The winding road leading
        up to the top of the Citadelle
        is called Route Merveilleuse.
        On the south side, it offers
        panoramic views over the

        
        

A stately university town, a centre of trade and the

capital of Wallonia, Namur straddles the confluence of
the rivers Sambre and Meuse. The town’s dominant fea-
ture is the massive, gaunt Citadelle, mounted on a spur
of rock that sits on the Grognon, a dagger-shaped spit of
land between the two rivers. The Romans built defences
here, and the Citadelle has since seen action in just
about every war that has swept across Belgium; the
last, World War II, brought widespread damage to the
city from air raids. Little remains of the medieval town,
the seat of the counts of Namur, but its old residential
areas are dotted with elegant 17th- and 18th-century
civic buildings and mansions. The suburb to the south
of the Meuse, called Jambes, was, until the 15th century,
ruled separately by the prince-bishops of Liège.

E Le Trésor d’Oignies

Couvent des Soeurs de Notre-Dame,

Rue Julie Billiart 17. Tel (081) 254300.

# 10am–noon, 2–5pm Tue–Sat,

10am–noon Sun. & 9

http://www.namurtourisme.be

Housed in a convent, Le

Trésor d’Oignies has exquisite

examples of medieval Mosan

(of the Meuse) silver and gold

work, ivory carvings, enamel-

ware, glass and mitres. The

treasury once belonged to the

Priory of Oignies in Hainaut,

but was whisked away and

hidden from the armies of

the French Revolution who

destroyed the priory in 1794.

The most celebrated pieces

are by the 13th-century monk,

Hugo d’Oignies, and include

bejewelled reliquaries, crosses

and ecclesiastical book covers.

E Musée Provincial des

Arts Anciens

Rue de Fer 24. Tel (081) 776754. #

10am–6pm Tue–Sun. ¢ 14–25 Dec.

& http://www.museedesartsanciens.be

Home to medieval and

Renaissance pieces from

Namur, the Musée Provincial

des Arts Anciens has a remark-

able collection of sculptures,

paintings, altarpieces, metal-

work, armour, stained glass

and embroidery. These are

elegantly displayed in a fine

18th-century mansion, the

Hôtel de Gaiffier d’Hestroy.

Sambre and Meuse. The

fortress itself is a sprawling

complex of robust defensive

ramparts, built between the

16th and 20th centuries. Its

network of underground pas-

sages inspired Napoleon to call

it “the termite hill of Europe”.

There are various exhibits,

activities and audiovisual

presentations, plus a little

train that ferries visitors about.

Also on the hill, close to the

17th-century Fort d’Orange,

is a small amusement park

for children called the Parc

d’Attractions Reine-Fabiola.

Namur’s mighty Citadelle rising above the banks of the River Meuse

E Musée Archéologique

de Namur

Rue du Pont 21. Tel (081) 231631.

# 10am–5pm Tue–Fri, 10:30am–

5pm Sat and Sun. & -

The impressive 16th-century

Halle al’Chair (Meat Hall)

is home to a remarkable

collection of prehistoric,

Gallo-Roman and Meroving-

ian artifacts such as statues,

pottery, mosaics, jewellery,

glassware and weapons. The

most celebrated exhibits are

the late-Roman treasures of

the 4th–5th centuries, excav-

ated from tombs in various

local sites. The museum also

has a beautiful 17th-century

scale model of Namur, made

for Louis XIV, which is at the

centre of a section on the his-

tory and evolution of the city.

Modern galleries at the Musée

Provincial des Arts Anciens