Grands Hôtels Belges, with Georges Marquet as the prominent figure.. Wars During World War I, the hotel suffered from marauding troops (first French, then German). It was not reopened until 1920. The number of rooms was expanded to 200 (1927) and the domain got its own airport (1929). Damage in World War II was even worse than the first. Joachim von Ribbentrop housed his headquarters there. After the liberation, the domain was the command post of the American Fifteenth Army, who, however, evacuated it during the Battle of the Bulge. After the war, German prisoners of war worked on the domain for some time. The Elleboudt-Lemineur couple kept it open for another four years after the war, but the market for luxury tourism from France and England appeared to have dried up. The curtain finally fell in 1949. The furniture was sold to the public (1950) and the rock tower became the Club House of the Royal Golf Club d'Ardenne. Fire The castle itself stood empty all this time and burned down in 1968 while roofing was being carried out on behalf of the Royal Trust (Belgium). The garden sculptures were transferred to the Park of Laeken (including Thomas Vinçotte's Seahorses) and the ruins were cleared in the 1970s. Although Chambon's outbuilding had not suffered any damage, it was also demolished. The rock tower was blown up in 1975, so that the Leopold tower is all that remains. It serves as a club house to the Royal Golf Club du Château Royal d'Ardenne. See also List of castles in Belgium External links Le Château Royal d'Ardenne à Houyet Book from Henri Lemineur Royal Golf Club du Château Royal d'Ardenne, www.destinationgolf.be Royal residences in Belgium Ardenne Ardenne Buildings and structures demolished in 1970 Demolished buildings and structures in Belgium