Godfried van Leuven ordered the building of the castle in 1236 to protect Brabant from invaders. 
The castle was repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt, evolving in this way from a medieval fortress into a romantic residence. 
There are thousands of valuable artefacts on show in the castle, such as furniture, tapestries, paintings, lots of gold and silverware, glass windows and sculptures. 
In one of the wings of the museum you can admire the bathroom, bedroom and 'chambre rouge' used by the marquise Arconati Visconti. 
In addition to its park with a 17th century pavilion, an old chapel and a triumphal arch in honour of Napoleon, the domain is also home to a fabulous museum garden with indigenous species of fruit and vegetables.