Kolvenburg, Billerbeck

Kolvenburg, more rarely spelled Colvenburg, is a former moated castle on the upper reaches of the Berkel River south of the town center of Billerbeck in the district of Coesfeld. Almost in sight is 1.3 kilometers southwest the house Hameren.

The Kolvenburg is a typical former residence of the lower nobility in the Münsterland, whose political and economic importance was only local. Rebuilt and extended several times in the course of its history, the noble owners only used the castle as a residence until about the middle of the 16th century, after which it was only leased out.

The present building presents itself in the style of the early Renaissance and dates in its present form from the 15th and 16th centuries, but its roots lie in a tower castle built by the Knights of Billerbeck in the 13th century. Via the eponymous von Colve family, the complex passed to the Voet family and from them to the von Münster family. Through marriage, the castle subsequently changed hands several times before the von Twickel family became the owners in the 19th century. Since 1966, they have leased the Kolvenburg to the district of Coesfeld, which uses it as one of two district-owned cultural centers.