1730. Montesquieu's well-deserved retirement in La Brède
And also
The tops
Famous French philosopher Montesquieu found peace and inspiration, here, in the familial castle, near Bordeaux, among the forest...
In the beginning, we found a former building in the 11th century, raised by lords de La Lande, then rebuilt in 1300.
During the Hundred Years war, the castle was seized. Damned! Why? Well, this family decided to become allied with king of England, who was the master of Aquitaine.
When kings of France get back the castle in 1453, king Charles VII gave back La Brède to the La Lande lords.
Then, our castle fell to Montesquieu family, in 1686.
Charles de Secondat, future baron of Montesquieu (our philosopher), was born here in 1689.
But the writer of the Lettres Persanes only moved in in 1730: before that, he travelled a lot, across Europe...
During your visit, don't miss the vast arms room and its ceiling designed as an upside-down boat hull!
Montesquieu kept here thousands of books...