Routes

Planner

Features

Updates

App

Get the App

Castles

Montmoreau-Saint-Cybard

Montmoreau Castle

Castles

Montmoreau-Saint-Cybard

Montmoreau Castle

Highlight • Castle

Montmoreau Castle

Name: Montmoreau Castle
Rating: 2

Recommended by 1 cyclists

Save

Location: Montmoreau-Saint-Cybard, Angoulême, New Aquitaine, France

Save

See rides here

Take Me There

Routes here

Top cycling routes to Montmoreau Castle

riders

1. Old station portico – Along the Charente River loop from Montmoreau

172km

10:40

1,480m

Hard bike ride. Very good fitness required. You may need to push your bike for some segments of this route.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Hard

5.0

(1)

riders

2. Lake Saint-Yrieix – Along the Charente River loop from Montmoreau

188km

11:57

1,700m

Hard bike ride. Very good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Hard

4.0

(1)

riders

3. Montmoreau Castle loop from Montmoreau

36.9km

02:17

340m

Moderate bike ride. Good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Moderate

Tips

Iron TUX

February 5, 2025

Montmoreau Castle is in the new commune of Montmoreau in Charente
Montmoreau is a new French commune located in the Charente department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It was created on January 1, 2017 from the merger of Montmoreau-Saint-Cybard, Saint-Amant, Saint-Eutrope, Saint-Laurent-de-Belzagot and Aignes and Puypéroux.

Montmoreau Castle stands at the top of a natural hill overlooking the Tude Valley. In the centuries of instability and disorder that followed the collapse of Roman Gaul, the invasion of the Arabs from Spain around 700 and the Viking raids in 844 added to the anxiety of the populations of our region. Then the disintegration of the Carolingian empire led to a dispersion of the centers of power from which feudalism would be born. This is why the 10th and 11th centuries were a time when a large number of fortified entrenchments or camps were established, often built on "castral mounds", which are at the origin of many of today's "castles".

The hill of Montmoreau offered in a way a perfect natural mound for the construction of what was probably at first a simple fortified camp and became a feudal castle in the 11th century. It occupied the platform and was provided with a double fortified enclosure. The two round towers of the current building belonged to the feudal castle. Likewise the porch chapel, Notre-Dame chapel, which was located in the first enclosure. But excavations would surely reveal traces of other remains.

The current castle was built on this same site in the middle of the 15th century, perhaps by Guy de Mareuil, lord of Montmoreau, Villebois and Mareuil. With the exception of the two feudal towers, the entire building is partly Gothic and partly Renaissance. It is a perfect witness to this pivotal period between a world that was ending and a world that was beginning. Over the centuries, it seems that the various lords and then owners of the castle never had enough money to add buildings from different periods to the building, as can be seen in so many other castles. Preserved almost intact since its construction, the castle of Montmoreau therefore offers an architectural heritage of exceptional purity. The renovations carried out by the current owner aim, by reinforcing the solidity of the buildings, to restore the original aspects under the few modifications that have been made.

Towards the east, overlooking the Tude valley, the castle displays a façade that looks great with its high main building flanked by the two round feudal towers and its sloping roofs of flat tiles from which the chimneys emerge. On the side of the north tower, about halfway up, we can make out an old door that opened onto the castle's patrol path. The Gothic gables of the central body bristle with stone plant crosiers. Their bases are seated on two sculptures of "intimidating lions", one opening its mouth to the north, the other to the south, and they are crowned by a finial. To the north and south, a pavilion leans against the gable. The southern one has just regained its original three-sided roof.

Towards the west, the façade that faces the park also mixes eras. The mullioned Renaissance windows retain civil Gothic motifs. The hexagonal tower of the staircase projects from the façade. It has a very beautiful door in flamboyant Gothic style, with a tympanum sculpted with prismatic ribs and intertwined foliage practically erased by the erosion of time. But if you look closely, you can make out a bird in profile among the foliage on the right side. Perhaps the signature of the stonemason artist. In the corner of this tower and the façade, stands a watchtower with a pointed bell tower made of chestnut essentes (a type of shingle) whose base in a "cul-de-lampe" is completely in the Renaissance style.

Source: montmoreau.fr/index-module-orki-page-view-id-116.html#:~:text=L'%C3%A9difice%20a%20%C3%A9t%C3%A9%20class%C3%A9,%C3%A9difice%20par%20la%20nef%20porche.
fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%C3%A2teau_de_Montmoreau
monumentum.fr/monument-histoire/pa00104431/montmoreau-chateau

Translated by Google •

In the know? Log-in to add a tip for other adventurers!

Details

Informations

Elevation 160 m

Weather

Sunday 14 December

14°C

6°C

15 %

If you start your activity now...

Max wind speed: 15.0 km/h

See rides here

Take Me There

Location: Montmoreau-Saint-Cybard, Angoulême, New Aquitaine, France

Other Popular Places to Check Out

Église Saint-Denys de Montmoreau

Les tourbières de Moutiers sur Boëme

Église Saint-Amant de Montmoreau

Kleine Höhle

Château de la Rochandry

Château de La Mercerie

Château de la Léotardie

Saint-Aulaye

Église Saint-Laurent de Saint-Laurent-des-Combes

Église Saint-Eutrope de Montmoreau

Saint-Jean Monolithic Church

Point de vue sur la vallée de la Dronne

Montmoreau Castle

1. Old station portico – Along the Charente River loop from Montmoreau

2. Lake Saint-Yrieix – Along the Charente River loop from Montmoreau

3. Montmoreau Castle loop from Montmoreau

Other Popular Places to Check Out

We value your privacy ⛰️

We value your privacy ⛰️