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A little history of Virieu castle

The castle | Acamay / CC-BY-SA
Castle Virieu castle

Our story began in the 11th century, when Guiffrey of Virieu raised the first stronghold. In 1230, this one fell by marriage to the Clermont family.

From the 13th to the 17th century, those one transformed Virieu little by little.

Come here! We enter the old farmyard and we get into the castle itself, built around a square courtyard with a gallery.

The façade overlooking the garden is flanked by 2 towers with covered way. A real medieval fortress!

But in the 16th century, the Clermont sold the castle to the Prunier de Saint-Laurent. In fact, Antoine de Clermont left Virieu... for Burgundy! The chap maybe designed here a nice brand new residence...

During wars of Religion, Virieu village and its castle were besieged by Lesdiguières, a famous Protestant leader in the area. A dark time...

Then, peace came back: in the 18th century, they laid out formal gardens. And in 1874, the estate fell to Alphonse of Virieu.

In 1925, a huge building site was launched: 10 years later, they opened Virieu to the public! We can visit the White bedroom, the King’s bedroom (king Louis XIII slept here in 1622!), the living-room, kitchens and the chapel...

About the the author

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