- Château de Taillebourg
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The Château de Taillebourg in 2009.
The Château de Taillebourg is a ruin from the medieval era. It is built on a rocky outcrop, overlooking the village of Taillebourg and the valley of the Charente River, in the Charente-Maritime department of France. It commanded a very strategic position and was therefore the focus of much conflict throughout the medieval era.
It featured in several episodes of the Hundred Years' War and the Saintonge War before that.
The previous castle on the site was shelter for Louis VII of France and Eleanor of Aquitaine on the day after their wedding, in 1137.
Richard Coeur de Lion destroyed this château, in 1194. Geoffrey III of Rancon, master of the house, died in this action. Richard had fought against his father in alliance with his brothers and the King of France, Louis. This uprising had failed, and as a result, Richard was stripped of his powers of duke of the land of Aquitaine. In a second campaign, Richard again fought the rebellious barons of his old dukedom, who were now under the full control of his father. This conflict lasted five years, ending in the victory of Richard and his destruction of the supposedly impregnable fortress of Taillebourg. This castle was inaccessible on three sides, protected by mountains, and the fourth side was heavily fortified. Richard knew that the overthrow of Taillebourg would lead to the immediate surrender of the barons, and captured the stronghold in his first great military victory.
The current chàteau was the base for Louis IX of France (Saint Louis), as a guest of Geoffrey IV of Rancon, before the Battle of Taillebourg in 1242.
The Château de Taillebourg, has today been converted to a public garden, where one can view the machicolations, the 18th-century battlements and the underground rooms of the old castle. The site's geographical position affords a viewpoint of the valley of the Charente.
See also
External links
- Taillebourg.net (in French)
Categories:- Châteaux in France
- Buildings and structures in Charente
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