The Château de Biron is a castle in the valley of the

Lède The Lède () is a long river in the Lot-et-Garonne ''département'', south-western France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories includ ...

in the '' commune'' of Biron in the

Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; ) is a large rural departments of France, department in south west France, with its Prefectures in France, prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and ...

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

'' of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

History

It was the castle from which the Gontaut-Biron took their name, their seat from the twelfth century. Biron was seized by the

Cathar Catharism ( ; from the , "the pure ones") was a Christian quasi- dualist and pseudo-Gnostic movement which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France, between the 12th and 14th centuries. Denounced as a he ...

s in 1211 and retaken by

Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester ( – 25 June 1218), known as Simon IV (or V) de Montfort and as Simon de Montfort the Elder, was a French nobleman and knight of the early 13th century. He is widely regarded as one of the great militar ...

the following year. The

Plantagenet The House of Plantagenet ( /plænˈtædʒənət/ ''plan-TAJ-ə-nət'') was a royal house which originated from the French county of Anjou. The name Plantagenet is used by modern historians to identify four distinct royal houses: the Angev ...

s held it at times during the 14th and 15th centuries. Biron was erected as a ''

duché-pairie The Peerage of France () was a hereditary distinction within the French nobility which appeared in 1180 during the Middle Ages. The prestigious title and position of Peer of France () was held by the greatest, highest-ranking members of the Fr ...

'' in 1598, for Charles de Gontaut, created duc de Biron. The present château bears additions over the centuries that make a picturesque ensemble: a twelfth-century

keep A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residen ...

, sixteenth-century living quarters, a chapel and vaulted kitchens. The ''commune'' purchased the Château de Biron in 1978, with a view to restoring the structure as a tourist draw. Since 1928, the Château de Biron has been listed as a ''

monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

'' by the

French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture () is the ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of France in charge of List of museums in France, national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and pro ...

References

External links

Château de Biron: site culturel
broken link * broken link * {{DEFAULTSORT:Biron, chateau de Castles in Nouvelle-Aquitaine Monuments historiques of Dordogne Historic house museums in Nouvelle-Aquitaine Museums in Dordogne

History

See also

References

External links