The Castle of Arginy () is a medieval French castle. It was built in the mid-14th century. It is located in the commune of

Charentay Charentay () is a Communes of France, commune in the Rhône (department), Rhône Departments of France, department in eastern France. Places The Castle of Arginy is located within the commune. See also * Communes of the Rhône department Refe ...

, in the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

department of

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (; AURA) or ; or ; . is a Regions of France, region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Auvergne and Rhône-Alpes. The new region came into e ...

, France. It is considered a partial historic monument by France. The castle is associated with

Knights Templar The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a Military order (religious society), military order of the Catholic Church, Catholic faith, and one of the most important military ord ...

legends.

Description

The castle is located in the commune of

, in

, France. It is highly representative of building styles in the northern

Lyonnais The Lyonnais (, ) is a historical province of France which owes its name to the city of Lyon. The geographical area known as the ''Lyonnais'' became part of the Kingdom of Burgundy after the division of the Carolingian Empire. The disintegra ...

and

Dombes The Dombes (; ) is an area in eastern France, once an independent municipality, formerly part of the provinces of France, province of Burgundy (region), Burgundy, and now a district comprised in the department of France, department of Ain, and b ...

regions. The castle itself consisted of two concentric enclosures. The low, quadrangular outer enclosure was flanked by four circular turrets at the corners, and was built at the same time as the lower courtyard. The quadrangular inner enclosure, formed of dwellings arranged around a small courtyard is flanked by three round turrets. Only one wing of this enclosure remains, and only two turrets do. In the last corner, stands the brick master tower, built in the 13th century, cylindrical on the outside and octagonal on the inside.

History

The castle was probably founded after the Beaujeu family sold the property to Guillaume du Vernet or Verneys, a member of the

bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and aristocracy. They are traditionally contrasted wi ...

from Montbrison. In 1374, Guichard de Verneys paid hommage at the castle. The du Vernet family owned it until either 1455 or the beginning of the 16th century, when it passed to various lower ranking families. In July 1974 the castle was decreed a partial historic monument (only the facades and roofs of the château and outbuildings, as well as the moat, are listed). The castle is associated with legends of the medieval

order. According to legend, the last Grand Master of the Order of the Temple,

Jacques de Molay Jacques de Molay (; 1240–1250 – 11 or 18 March 1314), also spelled "Molai",Demurger, pp. 1–4. "So no conclusive decision can be reached, and we must stay in the realm of approximations, confining ourselves to placing Molay's date of birth ...

, received his nephew, Guichard de Beaujeu, in prison to ask him to hide the

Templar treasure The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a military order of the Catholic faith, and one of the most important military orders in Western Christianity. They were founded in 11 ...

at Arginy. French esotericist

Jacques Breyer Jacques Roger Jean Breyer (27 March 1922 – 25 April 1996) was a French esotericist, alchemist and writer. He published and wrote various books on esoteric elements, including ones with Apocalypticism, apocalyptic teachings. He launched the "Ar ...

lived in the castle for some time, where he claimed he had mystical experiences. Based on a document that he claimed to find, Breyer identified the castle as the place that

Hugues de Payens , commonly known in French as or ( – 24 May 1136), was the co-founder and first Grand Master of the Knights Templar. Origin and early life The Latin text of William of Tyre's ''History of Deeds Done Beyond the Sea'', dated , calls him , ...

had originally founded the Knights Templar; he searched for relics in the estates of de Beaujeau's relatives to prove this but none were ever found. He would later create a resurgence of

neo-Templar Neo-Templarism is a term describing groups or people who claim to have revived, to be inspired by, or to be descendants of the Knights Templar. Following the dissolution of the Templars by Pope Clement V at the start of the 14th century, several ...

groups after his experiences in the castle, called the "Arginy Renaissance".

References

Works cited

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Description

History

References

Works cited

Further reading