Château de Lacoste

The Château de Lacoste origins are in the 11th century, but it was largely modified in subsequent centuries. It was for many years the property of the Simiane family.

In 1627, Diane Simiane married Jean-Baptiste de Sade, ancestor of the Marquis de Sade, who thus became owner of the estate. The Marquis de Sade stayed there from 1769 to 1772, between the scandals at Arcueil and Marseille, then after the latter and his flight to Italy, he took refuge there until his incarceration in the Château de Vincennes in 1777. Escaping while being transferred to Aix, he took refuge there for the last time from 16 July to 7 September 1778 before being returned to Vincennes.

It was in 1772 that he made his longest stay there, during which he built in the castle a theatre capable of holding 120 spectators. Throughout his internments, he maintained an extraordinary attachment (un attachement extraordinaire) for La Coste.

De Sade described Château de Lacoste in two of his works – La Marquise de Ganges and Les cent vingt journées de Sodome (The 120 Days of Sodom) – under the name of the Château de Silling.

During the French Revolution, the castle was vandalised and largely destroyed. The construction materials were sold. Crippled with debts, in 1796 the castle and its estate were sold to Rovère, deputy of Vaucluse and a native of Bonnieux, who, a victim of the Coup of 18 Fructidor, was deported to French Guiana where he died at Sinnamary in 1798.

The castle offers superb views over the valley of the Calavon, the Monts de Vaucluse, Mont Ventoux and the Alps, as well as the village of Bonnieux which can be seen on a neighbouring hill.

References:

• Wikipedia

Address

Rue de la Frescado 97, Lacoste, France

Details

Founded: 11th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in France
Historical period: Birth of Capetian dynasty (France)