Château de Vertheuil

English translation

The text above is the record as published by the Ministère de la Culture, in French. The English below is a machine translation made by TreeAlive, not by the Ministère de la Culture; it has not been checked by a person. Where the two differ, the original is the record. Report a translation error: privacy@treealive.com

History

The castle already existed at the end of the 11th century. In the course of the 14th century and in the 15th century, the family d'Albret then owners changed allegiance several times. So the castle was on several occasions confiscated, returned and retaken by the kings of England and passed in this way into the hands of various lords who remained faithful to that nation. In 1489, the barony is bequeathed to the chapter of Saint-André de Bordeaux who kept it until 1789, the date at which it was confiscated and sold as national property. The plan presents a polygonal enceinte surrounded by a wide circular ditch. A second part is composed of a posterior barbican, also polygonal. The foundations of the walls of the great enceinte and the barlong keep at the centre are Romanesque, probably from the end of the 11th century. The barbican and one of the towers are from the 14th century. On the angular buttresses were later added circular bartizans of which only the lower courses remain. In one of the corners has been fitted a vaulted chamber which may have served as a prison. The keep presents two storeys but it must have had more formerly. It was truncated and partitioned in the 18th century. The most accessible point of the fortress was protected by a square tower in projection. Around 1550, the castle was internally sacked. During the Second World War, it was occupied by the Germans and the maquis.