Castles in Occitanie

Château de Pailhès

Château de Pailhès is a fine example of medieval military architecture. It was built in the 12th century and reconstructed during 15th, 16th and 18th centuries. Today the castle is privately owned.
Founded: 12th century | Location: Pailhes, France

Château de Margon

The imposing Château de Margon consists of a rectangular building flanked with three towers. It dates from the early 13th century and was attached to the Kingdom of France in 1221. Le Moine de Margon family has owned the castle since 1719. Two side wings were added inside the courtyard of the 16th century. Château de Margon has also remarkable gardens.
Founded: 13th century | Location: Margon, France

Château de Pagax

Château de Pagax was built in the 13th century, the oldest mention dates from 1259. During the Renaissance the castle was rebuilt, and large windows were pierced to the walls.
Founded: 13th century | Location: Flagnac, France

Château de Valmirande

Built from scratch starting in 1892 by Baron de Lassus. Historic monument with a picturesque 100-acre park of character. The castle and its outbuildings were built by the architect Louis Garros.
Founded: 1892 | Location: Montréjeau, France

Château d'Avensac

Château d"Avensac was built in the 14th century and rebuilt in 1830 .
Founded: 14th century | Location: Avensac, France

Château de Caumont

Château de Caumont consists of two buildings on a vast esplanade overlooking the Save river valley. The old castle built on the site of a fortified castle that belonged to Gaston Phoebus. The present Renaissance castle whose construction lasted from 1525 to 1535. The castle sits on two levels of underground vaults, it is flanked by four strong towers so that openings and slits control the facades. Two octagonal towers a ...
Founded: 1525-1535 | Location: Cazaux-Savès, France

Château de Beaumont

The Château de Beaumont was constructed in the 14th century. Significant building work was carried out in the 15th, 17th and 18th centuries.
Founded: 14th century | Location: Gers, France

Château de Herrebouc

The Château de Herrebouc is a castle in the commune of Saint-Jean-Poutge. Though an older building, the present look of the castle is the result of a major campaign of construction work at the start of the 17th century. On the ground floor, the 17th century ceiling is partially conserved. The farm buildings date from this period. The pigeon loft is characteristic of the architecture of the time of Henri IV (reig ...
Founded: 17th century | Location: Saint-Jean-Poutge, France

Château de Cantepau

Château de Cantepau current appearance was built by Delecouls family around 1746, but the original castle dates from the 15th century.
Founded: 15th century | Location: Albi, France

Château de Mailhoc

Château de Mailhoc was first documented in 1227. The square form castle with corner towers played role in Hundred Years" War and Wars of Religion. Later it was altered in to Renaissance style.
Founded: 13th century | Location: Mailhoc, France

Château de Montgey

Perched on a hill overlooking the plain of Revel, Château de Montgey is beautiful private castle built in the 12th, 13th and 17th centuries and the church and its newly restored tower. If it is difficult to date the first castle, there is no doubt that it existed at the beginning of the 13th century. During the crusade of the Albigenses, in spring 1211, the Crusaders suffered a crushing defeat at the Battle of Montgey. ...
Founded: 13th century | Location: Montgey, France

Château de Graves

Château de Graves, while in its original state, was built between 1543 and 1555. In France, rare are the architectural evidence, characterizing the second Renaissance, arrived at our time in such good condition. Free access to the ground floor, the chapel, refectory and garden.
Founded: 1543 | Location: Villefranche-de-Rouergue, France

Château de Pomayrols

Château de Pomayrols may have been built in the 10th century. Its existence is attested since 1261 in the marriage certificate of Guillemette the Pons de Cayrodes" sister. The current castle, at least what us remains about it, was completed in 1446. It results from rehandlings and enlargings carried out on the castle of origin.
Founded: 15th century | Location: Pomayrols, France

Château de Durfort

Château de Durfort was erected on a rocky piton which overlooks the valley of the Orbieu. The present ruins are those of a strengthened habitat, including a chapel, dwellings with rectangular windows and a tower. High thick walls, cellars and wells, arched rooms of square buildings, corner turrets, watch towers and a main tower are still visible. There is no documentary evidence for the initial construction of this fort ...
Founded: 11th century | Location: Vignevieille, France

Château de Bertholène

Château de Bertholène history dates from early 12th century. The enclosure, several meters high, was equipped with numerous defensive elements. The castle was conquered and destroyed several times during its long existence. Since the early 19th century it has been abandoned and ruined.
Founded: 12th century | Location: Bertholène, France

Château des Bourines

Château des Bourines was built as fortified barn in the 13th century. The courtyard is protected by a curtain wall flanked by four corner towers.
Founded: 13th century | Location: Bertholène, France

Château de Calberte

Mentioned in documents from 1092, Calberte was one of the numerous feudal castles standing in the Cévenol valleys. It was hold turns by turns by Anduze and Budos families and was under the jurisdiction of Château des Portes. Abandoned at the end of the 14th century or at the beginning of the 15th century, it faded from memories until nowadays. Nobody could remember that the very name of Saint Germain de Calberte stems f ...
Founded: 11th century | Location: Saint-Germain-de-Calberte, France

Château de Galinières

Galinières was originally dependent on the Bonneval abbey of Bonneval, constituted from donations of noble families of the region and the bishops of Rodez between 1163 and 1181. The current structure was built mainly in the late 14th century and 15th century.
Founded: 14th century | Location: Pierrefiche, France

Château de Loupiac

Château de Loupiac was built in the 13th century. It is flanked with four round towers. The castle played an important role during the wars of Religion where it was caught and taken over by both sides. It was also conquered during the Revolution and burned down. Today it is privately owned.w
Founded: 13th century | Location: Lapanouse, France

Château de Montalègre

Counts of Montalègre have been known since 1268 and the castle was probably built also in the 13th century. The castle dominates the Valley of the Sorgues. The feudal castle consists of an almost square square building with two floors, flanked by four round towers.
Founded: 13th century | Location: Versols-et-Lapeyre, France

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Cesis Castle

German crusaders known as the Livonian Brothers of the Sword began construction of the Cēsis castle (Wenden) near the hill fort in 1209. When the castle was enlarged and fortified, it served as the residence for the Order's Master from 1237 till 1561, with periodic interruptions. Its ruins are some of the most majestic castle ruins in the Baltic states. Once the most important castle of the Livonian Order, it was the official residence for the masters of the order.

In 1577, during the Livonian War, the garrison destroyed the castle to prevent it from falling into the control of Ivan the Terrible, who was decisively defeated in the Battle of Wenden (1578).

In 1598 it was incorporated into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Wenden Voivodship was created here. In 1620 Wenden was conquered by Sweden. It was rebuilt afterwards, but was destroyed again in 1703 during the Great Northern War by the Russian army and left in a ruined state. Already from the end of the 16th century, the premises of the Order's castle were adjusted to the requirements of the Cēsis Castle estate. When in 1777 the Cēsis Castle estate was obtained by Count Carl Sievers, he had his new residence house built on the site of the eastern block of the castle, joining its end wall with the fortification tower.

Since 1949, the Cēsis History Museum has been located in this New Castle of the Cēsis Castle estate. The front yard of the New Castle is enclosed by a granary and a stable-coach house, which now houses the Exhibition Hall of the Museum. Beside the granary there is the oldest brewery in Latvia, Cēsu alus darītava, which was built in 1878 during the later Count Sievers' time, but its origins date back to the period of the Livonian Order. Further on, the Cēsis Castle park is situated, which was laid out in 1812. The park has the romantic characteristic of that time, with its winding footpaths, exotic plants, and the waters of the pond reflecting the castle's ruins. Nowadays also one of the towers is open for tourists.

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