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A little history of Chateaudun castle

The castle | Selbymay / CC-BY-SA
Castle Chateaudun castle

On its rocky spur overlooking river Loir, Châteaudun is a proud fortress! There was in the Celtic time a Roman oppidum (dun means "stronghold" in Celtic language) but the medieval fortress dates back to the 10th century, when count of Blois Thibaut set up after the Norman's invasion.

One of his descendants, Thibaut the Good, raised a castle between 1170 and 1190.

Fell to the Châtillon family in 1218, then to Louis of Orléans in 1391, the castle fell to "Orleans' bastard" (Joan of Arc's comrade in arms), Jean Dunois.

It was a gift from Jean's half-brother, Charles. With his wife Marie d'Harcourt, Jean transformed the old fortress into a nice residence. First, he raised a chapel in 1451.

Then, he put up the Dunois' wing, which occupied the Western side of the courtyard, with its wide windows.

Then he built the Northern wing (called Longueville's wing). In short, the two buildings were raised between 1460 and 1515.

Then, Châteaudun fell to the Luynes family in 1710.

But a fire demolished the city in 1723! A terrible blaze which ruined all houses... People were temporarily welcomed in the castle, but they damaged it a lot.

Seized during the French Revolution, Châteaudun suffered during the Prussian war, in 1870. City of Châteaudun finally bought it in 1930 and restored it.

About the the author

Vinaigrette
I'm fond of strolls and History, with juicy and spicy details!