Editing Waterloo, Belgium (section)

==Notable landmarks==
[[File:18 June 1815 – Waterloo – Saint Joseph's Church.jpg|thumb|[[Church of Saint Joseph, Waterloo|Church of Saint Joseph of Waterloo]]]]
{{unreferencedsect|date=April 2025}}
===Lion's Mound===
{{main article|Lion's Mound}}
[[File:0 Braine-l'Alleud 051012 (1).JPG|thumb|The immense ''{{lang|fr|Butte du Lion}}'' ("[[Lion's Mound]]") overlooking the [[Battle of Waterloo|battlefield of Waterloo]]]]

The [[Lion's Mound]] is a monument to the casualties of the 1815 Battle of Waterloo, located on the spot where a musket ball hit the shoulder of [[William II of the Netherlands]] (the Prince of Orange) and knocked him from his horse during the battle. A statue of a lion, looking towards [[France]], standing upon a stone-block pedestal surmounts the hill. Visitors can climb the 226 steps to the top of the hill for a panoramic vista of the battlefield.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rates |website=Waterloo 1815 | url=http://www.waterloo1815.be/index.php?page=rates |ref={{sfnref|Waterloo 1815}} |access-date=14 January 2017}}</ref> 

Other attractions nearby related to the battle are the [[Panorama of the Battle of Waterloo|Battle Panorama Mural]], [[Wellington Museum, Waterloo|Wellington Museum]], and the [[Roman Catholic]] [[Church of Saint Joseph, Waterloo|Church of St. Joseph]], where Wellington is said to have prayed before going into battle and where British and Dutch plaques commemorating the fallen are now to be seen.

===Argenteuil estate===
In 1831, approximately 250 hectares of land in the Sonian Forest was acquired by Ferdinand De Meeus, a member of the [[Belgian nobility]], who bestowed the name "Argenteuil" to the estate. The first "[[Château]] d'Argenteuil", built in 1835 was destroyed by a fire in 1847, and rebuilt between 1856 and 1858 using a design by Belgian architect, [[Jean-Pierre Cluysenaar]], and extensive landscaping of the surrounding lands by Édouard Keilig. In the 1920s the [[Meeûs d'Argenteuil|De Meeûs family]] [[Incorporation (business)|incorporated]] the estate into the "Domaine d'Argenteuil SA", and in 1929 sold 145 hectares of the land to American businessman, William Hallam Tuck. Tuck and his wife, Belgian heiress, Hilda Bunge, commissioned [[New York (state)|New York]] architect, [[William Delano]], to design the second major residence on the Argenteuil estate, the "Château Bellevue". Whilst the couple occupied the property, it became known commonly as the "Château Tuck".

====Château d'Argenteuil====
[[File:Château d'Argenteuil.JPG|thumb|Château d'Argenteuil]]
In 1940, the Château d'Argenteuil, 20 hectares of its surrounding lands and a farm were sold to a [[Carmelites|community of Carmelite Sisters]] in exchange for their properties in [[Uccle]], Brussels. However, the château was not suited to their needs, and they moved out in 1947. The [[Belgian government]] acquired the Château d'Argenteuil in 1949. In 1950, as part of preparations for the [[1958 Brussels World’s Fair]], the Belgian government used the chateau to relocate the French-speaking section of the ''{{lang|fr|École normale ménagère et agricole de l'État}}'', an all-female [[normal school]], from Laeken, the site of the exhibition. The château's bedrooms were refitted for [[Boarding school|boarders]]. The Belgian government later used the site for various Belgian state school establishments, building dedicated buildings for classrooms on the grounds of the château. In 1990, the [[Scandinavian School of Brussels]], Queen Astrid School, purchased the Château d'Argenteuil and its grounds, and relocated there in 1992. From September 2016, the [[European School of Bruxelles-Argenteuil]] began operating on the same site.

====Château Bellevue====
In 1949, the Belgian government acquired the Château Bellevue, originally for use by the Belgian national rail company, the [[SNCB]]. In 1958 it was used as residence for distinguished visitors to the 1958 World's Fair in Brussels. From 1961  it was the official residence of the [[Belgian royal family]], [[King Leopold III]] and his wife [[Princess Lilian of Belgium|Princess Lilian]], up until her death in 2003. During discussions on the [[Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe]] there were proposals to turn the château into a residence for the mooted position of the [[President of the European Union]]. However, the Belgian government sold the Chateau Bellevue in September 2004.

====Dames de Berlaymont====
In 1960, Count Ludovic de Meeûs d'Argenteuil sold thirty hectares of the Argenteuil estate to the Dames de Berlaymont, who had to vacate their properties in Brussels following their acquisition by the Belgian state for the purpose of building a [[Berlaymont building|headquarters]] for the [[European Commission]]. The nuns established a new [[convent]] and boarding school on the site.