Where past and present meet
Hof van Aragon was founded in 1963, in the old, Liège city neighborhood. The main hall of the Court of Aragon is located at number six Aragon Street. This house – formerly called “Saint George” – is probably the original home of the foot and crossbow guild “Saint George. That guild was responsible for defending the city gates before the city was completely walled off after 1212.
Philip the Handsome & Joan of Castile
In 1496, Joan of Castile and Philip the Handsome married in Lier. This created a historic union between our regions and Spain; moreover, from that marriage, the future Emperor Charles V was born four years later. Johanna and Philip had never met before their acquaintance in Lier, but according to legend, the meeting was the beginning of a lifelong infatuation. After Philip’s death a decade later, Johanna closed herself off from the world, a decision from which she earned the nickname the Mad.
A historic event like this would be enough elsewhere to put the city on the tourist world map, but not in Lier. The Court of Aragon still hosts wedding parties, but the hotel only got its name a decade ago. It is a succession of six small historic properties on Aragon Street and Mosdijk. One such building was known in the Middle Ages as St. George’s, the home of the crossbow guild that was responsible for defending the city. Another building, the former Maegdenhuys, once housed an orphanage for girls.
‘t Maegdenhuys
A smaller room is located in the “Maegdenhuys” on Mosdijk number five. Formerly an orphanage for girls, the “Maegdenhuys” is now an important part of the Court of Aragon.
In the 1980s, the Maegdenhuys was converted into a hotel and banquet hall, but no permit ever came through, until the buildings were purchased a decade later by the Rastelli Group. One made the necessary modernizations. Meanwhile, the building was classified as a protected monument.
Because the buildings are protected, the architects had to be creative. You reach the 20 rooms through a tangle of corridors and stairs that connect the hotel’s six buildings. Each room is different in size and decor. The largest rooms have been given a contemporary look. From the spacious bath here you have a view of the monumental St. Gummarus Church. In the smaller rooms on the upper floors, the old wooden beams are beautifully incorporated into the furnishings.
Want to know more about our past?
During your stay, ask for the booklet “The Wondrous History of the Court of Aragon,” written by Liège author Wim Van Gelder.