Many once-opulent houses have been abandoned across the world. The buildings are in poor condition, with shattered windows, missing roofs, and disintegrating masonry.
Miranda Castle in Belgium was built in 1866 by the Liedekerke-De Beaufort family. The architect was an Englishman called Edward Milner, who sadly died before the house was finished.
According to legend, the structure was constructed in 1903 by a French architect called Pelchner. During the French Revolution, the Liedekerke-De Beaufort family was compelled to evacuate France and settle in Belgium.
The family stayed in the house until World War II, when they were forced to evacuate when Nazi army authorities took over the structure and put them in the firing line during the Battle of the Bulge. The National Railway Company of Belgium took over the property in 1950 and used it to accommodate orphans and chronically ill children until the late 1970s. The home was lovingly nicknamed “Château de Noisy” by the residents at the time. The castle was abandoned in 1991 owing to the prohibitive expense of maintenance. It, like the previous properties, has been the victim of vandalism and fires.
The town of Celles has expressed interest in purchasing the land, but the owners have once again refused to sell. In 2013, the family requested for a permission to destroy the property but as of January 2106 the dilapidated structure was still standing and a petition is being distributed on www.change.org to rescue it from demolition.
2 The Liu Family Mansion of Taiwan
The Lin Ben Yuan family of Banqiao, Taiwan, commissioned the Three-Courtyard Mansion in 1929 to serve as a family dwelling. The family utilized the previously majestic property as their headquarters as leaders of the Zhangzhou immigrants until the Japanese colonization of Taiwan ended in the 1950s.
There are various ghost stories, including one about a family servant who committed suicide and another about Japanese Imperial soldiers who inhabited the building during the Japanese occupation and were killed out during a fight on the grounds. Nearby trees have started to ring the hollow, abandoned mansion with roots and branches, attempting to recover the ground and turn it back into jungle. Explorers have been visiting the region for so long that one astute business owner has erected a coffee shop next door named the Haunted Café to capitalize on the tourist traffic. The historic home will not be demolished, and the property owners appear to encourage explorers and tourists.
1 The Tyrone House
yrone House in County Galway, Ireland, was planned in the Palladian style by John Roberts of Waterford and erected in 1779 for Christopher St. George, whose family controlled a vast tract of land in Kilcolgan in the 17th and 18th centuries. Originally, the entry hall had a life-size white marble statue of the second Lord St. George costumed as a Roman emperor and placed beneath the St. George family insignia.
The Tyrone home represented classical Irish style, surrounded by fruit orchards, rose gardens, wine vines, and a wildlife sanctuary. St. Georges was also a horse breeder and the originator of the Galway Races. The St. George family eventually departed the house after emptying away the treasures, which were split among family members.
The manor house had already begun to deteriorate by 1912. During the Irish War of Independence in the 1920s, the Irish Republican Army demolished the interior to prevent the Royal Irish Constabulary Special Reserve from using it as a hospital. According to legend, the old caretaker, who was sick and unable to evacuate, was carried to an outbuilding used as an office before the building was destroyed, along with his bedroom furnishings and beddingfurniture.
