The Château de Montbrun is a
castle in the ''
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
'' of
Dournazac in the
Haute-Vienne ''
département
In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. Ninety ...
'' of France. The castle was built in the 12th and 15th centuries, and was restored in the late 19th century.
The castle stands within a deep valley. Built in the 12th century, its function was to defend the borders of the
Duchy of Aquitaine
The Duchy of Aquitaine ( oc, Ducat d'Aquitània, ; french: Duché d'Aquitaine, ) was a historical fiefdom in western, central, and southern areas of present-day France to the south of the river Loire, although its extent, as well as its name, fluc ...
. Though rebuilt in the 15th century, it still has the
moat, high walls and a square
keep topped with
machicolations.
Montbrun is a fine example of a 15th-century castle. In plan rectangular, it is flanked in the corners with round towers and protected by water. Its narrow
romanesque keep, square, close up against one of the towers, gives it a strange appearance.
History
The castle (then called Trados) was built in 1179 by Aymeric Bruni (also called Brun) on his return from the
Second Crusade. The Brun family, (Montbrun after 1366), remained owners until 1516. At the start of the
Hundred Years' War, the castle was occupied by the
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
. It was retaken by the French in 1353. At the end of the century it was taken again by the English and partially destroyed. Between 1433 and 1438, square towers were replaced with round towers and the castle took on its present form.
In 1562, Montbrun was attacked by
Protestants during the
Wars of Religion
A religious war or a war of religion, sometimes also known as a holy war ( la, sanctum bellum), is a war which is primarily caused or justified by differences in religion. In the modern period, there are frequent debates over the extent to wh ...
and although it was not captured a fire raged through the castle.
During the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...
, at the instigation of people's representatives Borie and
Jacques Brival, the castle was pillaged and destroyed and the archives were burned. The property was divided up and sold as national property.
Restored in 1871, it suffered a serious fire in 1916.
[ A second restoration was carried out between 1964 and 1966.
It has been a protected '' monument historique'' listed by the ]French Ministry of Culture
The Ministry of Culture (french: Ministère de la Culture) is the ministry of the Government of France in charge of national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and protection of the arts (visua ...
.[
It was purchased by Maarten Lamers, a Dutch businessman.]
See also
* List of castles in France
This is a list of castles in France, arranged by Region and Department.
;Notes:
# The French word ''château'' has a wider meaning than the English ''castle'': it includes architectural entities that are properly called palaces, mansions or vine ...
References
External links
*
Video of the castle (2'46)
on ''YouTube''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montbrun, chateau de
Castles in Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Buildings and structures in Haute-Vienne
Monuments historiques of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
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