Château de Crussol
Encyclopedia
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
in the commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
of Saint-Péray
Saint-Péray
Saint-Péray is a commune in the Ardèche department in the Rhône-Alpes region in southern France.-Population:-See also:* Château de Crussol, located on the territory of the commune.*Communes of the Ardèche department-References:*...
that dominates the valley of Rhône
Rhône River
The Rhone is one of the major rivers of Europe, rising in Switzerland and running from there through southeastern France. At Arles, near its mouth on the Mediterranean Sea, the river divides into two branches, known as the Great Rhone and the Little Rhone...
, just opposite Valence
Valence, Drôme
Valence is a commune in southeastern France, the capital of the Drôme department, situated on the left bank of the Rhône, south of Lyon on the railway to Marseilles.Its inhabitants are called Valentinois...
in the Ardèche
Ardèche
Ardèche is a department in south-central France named after the Ardèche River.- History :The area has been inhabited by humans at least since the Upper Paleolithic, as attested by the famous cave paintings at Chauvet Pont d'Arc. The plateau of the Ardeche River has extensive standing stones ,...
département, Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes is one of the 27 regions of France, located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the Rhône River and the Alps mountain range. Its capital, Lyon, is the second-largest metropolitan area in France after Paris...
région
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Location
Located over the peak of the hill of Crussol, at the edge of a cliff over 200 metres above surrounding plain, the castle overlooks Saint-PéraySaint-Péray
Saint-Péray is a commune in the Ardèche department in the Rhône-Alpes region in southern France.-Population:-See also:* Château de Crussol, located on the territory of the commune.*Communes of the Ardèche department-References:*...
in the west, and Guilherand-Granges
Guilherand-Granges
Guilherand-Granges is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France.-Population:-References:*...
and Valence in the east. The site comprises about 3 hectare
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
s, including the Vilette, a small hamlet of about a hundred houses, and the castle itself at the top of the hill. The entire grounds are enclosed by ramparts that are still quite visible.
History
The hill of Crussol has been occupied since RomanRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
times. Initially, it was the site of a temple, which was subsequently extended with a fortified building to the south in the course of the 5th century, but was abandoned in later centuries for the present site. The first fort, probably built in the 10th century, was made of wood and was destroyed in a fire. It was rebuilt in stone in the 12th century, by a lord named Gerald Basset, in order to control the existing transportation route along the Rhône River
Rhône River
The Rhone is one of the major rivers of Europe, rising in Switzerland and running from there through southeastern France. At Arles, near its mouth on the Mediterranean Sea, the river divides into two branches, known as the Great Rhone and the Little Rhone...
.
At the end of the 15th century, the Crussols were linked by marriage to the Uzès
Uzès
Uzès is a commune in the Gard department in southern France.It lies about 25 km north-northeast of Nîmes.-History:Originally Ucetia, Uzès was a small Gallo-Roman oppidum, or administrative settlement. The town lies at the source of the Eure, from where a Roman aqueduct was built in the first...
. The castle was abandoned for the more comfortable Château d'Uzès. During the Religious Wars
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
, the castle was taken and set afire on several occasions by various warlords. It was finally sacked in the 17th century.
On September 3, 1855, a mine explosion in the quarry under the castle destroyed part of the building. Lightning further destroyed part of the keep in 1952.
The site was classified as an official historical monument of France
Monument historique
A monument historique is a National Heritage Site of France. It also refers to a state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building or a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, or gardens, bridges, and other structures, because of their...
in 1927. The commune of Guilherand-Granges
Guilherand-Granges
Guilherand-Granges is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France.-Population:-References:*...
bought the ruins in 1984, even though the site is technically within the boundaries of the commune of Saint-Péray
Saint-Péray
Saint-Péray is a commune in the Ardèche department in the Rhône-Alpes region in southern France.-Population:-See also:* Château de Crussol, located on the territory of the commune.*Communes of the Ardèche department-References:*...
. The inter-commune syndicate of these two communes and Soyons
Soyons
Soyons is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France.-Population:...
are jointly engaged in the restoration of the castle.