LORD OF THE MANOR
I built an 85ft CASTLE in my garden with damsels & guards…I was sick of just visiting other ones, says ‘Lord Gregorious’
Castle Olt Stoutenburght is even available to rent for parties and weddings on a limited basis
A PENSIONER has built an 85ft high castle in his back garden after becoming sick of visiting other one's.
Gerry Halman, or Lord Gregarious as he likes to call himself, has spent the last 34 years making the medieval-style building.
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Located in his garden in the village of Blesdijke, about 70 miles northeast of Amsterdam, in the Netherlands, Castle Olt Stoutenburght cuts a magnificent figure amongst its surroundings.
Boasting four towers that contain several storeys, a main hall, suits of armour, and an underground cellar, the castle has been constructed with great attention to detail.
What's even more impressive is how Gerry, 76, has worked on the structure almost single-handedly.
And he credits his marvellous creation with the fact he became fed up of not having his own castle.
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“I’m really a fan of history," Gerry explained. "I’ve visited many castles, but at some point, that wasn’t enough.
“I had to start building one myself.
“I always get inspiration for my work through books and visiting other castles.”
Gerry also claims to be particularly inspired by Romanesque architecture.
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Despite having no architectural training, the pensioner claims he has "not yet discovered a crack in the wall" of his magnificent buidling.
"Reading books, that is the secret. That can take you far," he said.
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“I don't have any construction drawings because everything is in my head."
However, even though he has been working on the project for more than three decades, Gerry insists it remains unfinished.
He even concedes that the fantasy castle may never be completed in his lifetime.
“The castle is never finished," he said.
Gerry, who is building the castle on an underlying layer of Ice Age clay on his land, used to own a fancy dress store.
As such, he has placed mannequins around the castle as tower guards and damsels in distress.
He even recently added a dragon to the castle as a birthday gift to himself, according to .
Gerry believes the mythical creature serves to protect the people and now partners a Phoenix that had previously stood for three years.
“Yin and Yang,” said the lord of the castle. “My birthday was a great opportunity to give myself this dragon as a gift.
"I have many friends and acquaintances, but I don't think I should expect these kinds of gifts from them."
Despite insisting the project remains unfinished, Castle Olt Stoutenburght is available to rent for parties and weddings on a limited basis.
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Former animator David, 53, constructed the bizarre makeshift home - known as the Hobbit House - from rubbish and recycled foam found at a tip near Toulouse in France.
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And a former carpenter who built his own private island out of plastic bottles makes a living off of cash from tourists.
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