The building below (located just south of Brussels) was built in 1783 and served as a coach house and staff residence for a priory. After the priory was scrapped, the building was given a new name. Halfway through the 19th century, it was repurposed and furnished as a restaurant/inn which proved to be popular among wealthy bourgeoisie who came to rest after a walk in the woods or following a race at the Groenendaal racecourse.
Several extensions were added to the Château de Groenendael after the turn of the century, but the restaurant remained until around 1970. In 1998, the building was given protection as a monument, and four years later, a restoration project began that was completed in 2009. The building currently houses the offices of Inverde, one of the four branches of Natuurinvest which invests in green projects of the government and its partners.
Back in the day when the building was a renowned hotel-restaurant, its proprietor was Nicolas Rose. Rose was also a dog breeder who’d bred several sheepdogs with long black hair, among them a bitch named, “Petite.” Petite had placed first at the 1892 dog show in Cureghem even though black long-haired sheepdogs were clearly in the minority
Around that same time, a Mr. Beernaerte living in Uccle, a municipality in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium, purchased a working herding dog he’d found in Feluy-Arquermes. As it happened, the dog he named “Piccard d’Uccle” also had long black hair.
Long story short: “Piccard d’Uccle” was bred to “Petite,” and their puppies (among them “Pitt,” “Barotille,” “Margot,” and “Berger”) established the Belgian Sheepdog breed. By some accounts, the little black puppies were a sensation, and fanciers wanted to name the dog after their breeder, Nicholas Rose. “Rose,” however, seemed an inappropriate name for an all black dog, and they were named instead for the village and chateau in which they were born: Groenendael. All Groenendaels are said to descend from these ancestors, and one need only to trace a pedigree back far enough to find at the beginning, “Piccard 
d’Uccle” and “Petite.”
We thought Belgian Sheepdog owners might get a kick out of seeing where it all began, and anyone visiting Belgium should know that tours of the original building are available.
As for the different names, all major kennel clubs in Europe, such as the Kennel Club of the UK, recognize these dogs (either as a breed or a variety of the larger breed) as the Groenendael or Chien de Berger Belge. The AKC recognizes the breed as the Belgian Sheepdog.
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Thank you for sharing this! Glad to see that the Chateau has been preserved.
You bet! We were glad to see it preserved as well, and given it’s age, a bit surprised to see it still standing!
Great information. We have a lovely Tervuren boy and when we were in Brussels(2014) we went to our ‘Mecca’….. Tervuren. There was no special note for this fabulous dog. We didnt even meet a Belgian of any variety while there. We took lots of photos of the area and signs but nothing of special note. I was so disappointed. A few years later, I read somewhere, the town has erected some kind of a metal statue for the breed. It’s a shame more isn’t landmarked or noted.
Meg, how disappointing, that IS a shame. We’ll see if we can unearth information about a Tervuren statue!
Thank you for the photo and story. I’ve been in love with this breed since 1960.
Thank you for the comment, Sue. This is such a handsome breed, and to have had one since 1960 makes you an expert, we think!
What a great story! And a coincidence that my female Groen that I got from Willow Creek Kennels in Finland is named AKC Grand Champion Willow Creek Rose of the Rockies – we call her Akira Rose!
That IS a coincidence, Janet, and what a great name the little lady!
Wish the picture had shown where the building actually says Groenendael. I took a picture of it when I was driving in Belgium in 1992 to pick up my female Groenendael. I wanted a “real” Belgian as my male was from Texas and while he was from one of the top US breeders at the time, he wasn’t true to the international standard because judges back then were more interested in long black haired dogs that resembled German Shepherds than the standard. I gave up on finishing my female even though she was exactly to standard & had a perfect pedigree (dad was a world champ & full brother took the young class at the national show in Belgium).
my amstaff was killd jan 21 st agnes day here in port orange flolrida an i m lookin for a belgian sheepdog maybe th black groen = i lovd my “effie” so much but pit bull breeds are dangerous.
We’re sorry about your Effie, Joseph, though we can’t agree that all pit bull breeds are dangerous. We’ve known too many AmStaffs, Staffordshires, APBTs and Pitties who were sweethearts. Ancestry, careful breeding and proper socialization are, we think, more responsible for a pup’s temperament than its breed.