The Château de Lassay is a 15th-century castle in Lassay-les-Châteaux, in the Mayenne department.
History
The first mention of a castrum in Lassay dates back to the 12th century. Owned by Charles de Vendôme at the beginning of the 15th century, the castle is destroyed by French troops since Charles de Vendôme was supporting the English during the Hundred Years War.
In 1458, the French king Charles VII allowed the son of Charles de Vendôme, Jean II, to rebuild a castle. The new castle was achieve within one year. The barbican was built in 1497-1498.
Since then, the castle was left mainly intact and the original 15th-century architecture preserved by the different owners of the castle.
The castle is listed as a Monument historique since 1862. It is open for the visit from April to September.

Château de Lassay

Account

by category

Login

Name

by region

Title

Name in English

Château du Bois Thibault is a 15th-century ruined castle in the commune of Lassay-les-Châteaux, Pays de la Loire, France. It was owned by the du Bellay family for nearly 300 years. It is a listed national historic monument of France.
History
A castle was originally built on the site in the 11th century by Geoffrey II, Count of Anjou, as a defense against William the Conqueror. The lands came into the possession of the Logé (or Lougé) family in the 12th century, who in the 16th century became prominent in Normandy, with a fiefdom seated at the parish of La Lande-de-Lougé.
In 1423, during the Hundred Years' War, the English occupied the Château de Lassay. The Château du Bois Thibault was soon occupied by a company of Scotsmen, fighting on behalf of France, who fortified themselves there, but were overrun by the English. Jean II, Duke of Alençon successfully drove the English out of the castle but destroyed it in the process. The land came into the hands of the du Bellay family of Anjou in 1429 by the marriage of Jeanne de Logé and Jean du Bellay, lord du Bellay, who constructed a new castle on the ruins from 1450 to 1462. The left part of the castle dates to this 15th-century construction.
Jean du Bellay's grandson Louis, who was the archdeacon of Paris and adviser to the Parliament, commissioned further work. He constructed the northwestern part of the castle, and added additional architectural details to the other already existing structure, including the pretty armrest overlooking the inner courtyard and the staircase in the adjacent tower.
During the French Wars of Religion, the Huguenots damaged the chapel and destroyed the mausoleum dedicated to Louis du Bellay. The castle remained in the family until 1751, when it changed hands to the Matz du Brossay. During this time, it gradually fell into a state of disrepair. In 1762, the castle was auctioned off to Léonor-François de Tournely, lord of Aulnais. The castle needed significant repairs, and de Tournely began several years of restoration work before he died in 1777. The castle was spared from destruction during the Great Fear on 3 August 1789, when the prévôt of Mayenne, La Raitrie, stepped forward to save castle. After the Revolution, de Tournely's widow and three sons emigrated, and the castle passed through inheritance to the Saint-Paul de Lingeard family.
In 1925, it belonged to the de Broglie family and later, to Parisian antique dealers named Soubrier.
In 1988, the town of Lassay-les-Châteaux bought the ruins and the site. The Cultural Association of Lassay-les-Châteaux offers guided tours, as well as occasional entertainment, including medieval dinners and scavenger hunts.
Description
The castle consists of a rectangular walled enclosure, flanked by four towers. The southwest and northwest buildings are connected by an entrance porch. The south part includes the kitchen, was equipped with a huge fireplace and a bread oven, bedrooms and state rooms. Upstairs were more bedrooms and state rooms. The vaulted cellar survived, featuring a double row of arches.

Château du Bois Thibault

Placé à la frontière de la Normandie et du Maine, cité au XI° et très impliqué dans la Guerre de Cent Ans, ce château est attesté en 1415 comme « clos à douves » et détenteur d’un droit de haute et basse justice. Sa construction se fait en plusieurs phases : tandis que la tour Nord serait du XIV° ou XV° siècle, le corps central est édifié au XV°, puis restauré aux XVII° et XVIII° ; la tour Sud date de 1769. L’aspect du bâtiment, dominé par la fausse symétrie existant entre les deux tours, est composite ; l’élément le plus intéressant est la tour Nord qui conserve plusieurs éléments du XIV°-XV° : ses mâchicoulis, une belle charpente en parapluie et, au niveau de ses caves, plusieurs archères destinées à protéger les douves.
https://openagenda.com/jep-2017-pays-de-la-loire/events/chateau-du-bois-de-maine

Château de Bois-du-Maine

The Château de Domfront is a ruined castle in the town of Domfront, in the Orne département of France.
The Château de Domfront has been protected as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture since 1875. The ruins include the keep, the enceinte, ramparts, towers, casemates and the former Sainte-Catherine et Saint-Symphorien chapels. The castle ruins have been repaired since 1984 by the Association pour la Restauration du Château de Domfront.
The ruins stand in a public park and are open to the public free of charge.
History
In 1049, the castle at Domfront, belonging to Guillaume II Talvas, lord of Bellême, was besieged by William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy. In 1092, the people of Domfront revolted against Robert II de Bellême, Earl of Shrewsbury, transferring their allegiance to the third son of William the Conqueror, Henri Beauclerc, who became duke of Normandy (1106) and King of England (1100).
In 1169, it was at the Château de Domfront that Henry II of England received the papal legates who came to reconcile him with Thomas Becket.
Taken in 1204 - Domfront being the personal possession of John Lackland - it was conceded to first to Renaud de Dammartin, Count of Boulogne, and later to Philippe Hurepel. With the death of his successor, Jeanne, in 1251 Domfront returned to the royal domain.
In 1259, Louis IX of France gave Domfront to Robert II, Count of Artois, as dowry for his wife. After his death (1302), in compensation for not getting Artois, in 1332 his grandson Robert III of Artois was given the Norman property and appanages that had been confiscated.
In 1342, Philip VI of France ceded the Domfront country to the Count of Alençon who, in 1367, reunited Domfront and Alençon.
In the meantime, in 1356, troops of Charles II of Navarre (Charles the Bad), king of Navarre, commanded by Sir Robert Knolles, took the place and held it until 1366.
During the winter of 1417-1418, the castle was besieged by the English commanded by the Duke of Clarence and fell on the 10 July 1418. The French recaptured it for a time in 1430. It was finally taken by the French on 2 August 1450.
Ownership was again disputed in 1466-1467.
In 1574, the Château de Domfront, serving as a refuge for the Count of Montgomery, was besieged by royal troops under the Marshal of Matignon, capitulating on 27 May. The count was beheaded in Paris in 1574 on the orders of the Queen.
Maximilien de Béthune, duc de Sully ordered the demolition of the castle in 1608.

Château de Domfront

Le château de Bourgon se situe sur la route de Belgeard, commune de Montourtier.
Histoire et architecture
C'est un château du xve siècle. En 600 ans, le château n’a été vendu que deux fois.
En 1406, Jean de Montecler, notable chevalier, acquit la terre de Bourgon, que ses descendants possédèront jusqu'en 1577.
Il a appartenu aux Montmorency au xviie siècle. La salle principale et l’escalier sont du xve siècle, avec une construction de pierres. Les autres pièces ont été rajoutées plus tardivement (sauf le petit salon qui serait une des parties de l'ancien château), et possèdent de remarquables boiseries du xviiie siècle. Le château renferme des pièces très particulières : une bibliothèque garnie des livres de quelques centaines d’années, un chartrier datant de plus de 600 ans où sont conservées les archives du château, la chambre très particulière nommée « le cabinet bleu » de la marquise de Sablé, épouse d’Urbain de Montmorency-Laval, une chapelle datant de 1528 et un pont traversant les anciennes douves, aujourd'hui asséchées.
Certains bâtiments annexes bénéficient d'une inscription au titre des monuments historiques depuis le 29 décembre 1994, alors que le château, le pont dormant et le portail sont classés depuis le 9 août 1996.
Il a été racheté en 2004 par M. et Mme Ducatillon, un couple venant de la région du Nord de la France. La French Heritage Society fit un don en 2009 pour la restauration du château et des travaux importants de toiture sont programmés pour 2010 à 2012, agréés par la Demeure historique.