Trazegnies was originally a powerful independent "seigneurie" on the edges of the Duchy of Brabant, the County of Hainaut and the Prince-Bishopric of Liège and was ruled by a separate dynasty. The original castle was built by Gilles I in the 11th Century but was almost completely destroyed in 1554 by the armies of Henry II of France during the Italian War of 1551–1559. Subsequently rebuilt, a "corps de logis" was added to the castle by Gillion-Othon de Trazegnies in the Louis XIII style in the 17th Century.