Château de Gavaudun
Encyclopedia
The Château de Gavaudun is a castle
in the village of Gavaudun
(Lot-et-Garonne
, France
) on the river Lède
, near the Périgord noir
region. It was built on a rocky spur and overhangs the river. The lofty 13th century keep
rises 25m above the level of the rock.
In the vicinity are the Château de Bonaguil and the Château de Biron
.
and Agenais
.
The bishop of Périgueux besieged it and destroyed it for the first time in 1165.
During the Hundred Years' War
it was of central importance in the conflict between England and France.
The Château de Gavaudun has been listed by the French Ministry of Culture as a monument historique
since 1862.
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 village of Gavaudun
Gavaudun
Gavaudun is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in south-western France....
(Lot-et-Garonne
Lot-et-Garonne
Lot-et-Garonne is a department in the southwest of France named after the Lot and Garonne rivers.-History:Lot-et-Garonne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
, 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...
) on the river Lède
Lède
The Lède is a 54 km long river in the Lot-et-Garonne département, south-western France, right tributary of the Lot River. Its source is near Lacapelle-Biron. It flows generally southwest through the town Monflanquin and flows into the Lot in Casseneuil....
, near the Périgord noir
Périgord
The Périgord is a former province of France, which corresponds roughly to the current Dordogne département, now forming the northern part of the Aquitaine région. It is divided into four regions, the Périgord Noir , the Périgord Blanc , the Périgord Vert and the Périgord Pourpre...
region. It was built on a rocky spur and overhangs the river. The lofty 13th century keep
Keep
A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word keep, but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residences, used as a refuge of last resort should the rest of the...
rises 25m above the level of the rock.
Château de Biron
The Château de Biron is a castle in the French commune of Biron in the valley of the Lède, a tributary of the Lot River in the département of Dordogne in Périgord, part of the region of Aquitaine.-History:...
.
History
The castle was built during the 12th and the 13th centuries, on the main road between PérigordPérigord
The Périgord is a former province of France, which corresponds roughly to the current Dordogne département, now forming the northern part of the Aquitaine région. It is divided into four regions, the Périgord Noir , the Périgord Blanc , the Périgord Vert and the Périgord Pourpre...
and Agenais
Agenais
Agenais, or Agenois, was a province of France located in southwest France south of Périgord.In ancient Gaul the region was the country of the Nitiobroges with Aginnum for their capital, which in the fourth century was the Civitas Agennensium, which was a part of Aquitania Secunda and which formed...
.
The bishop of Périgueux besieged it and destroyed it for the first time in 1165.
During the Hundred Years' War
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...
it was of central importance in the conflict between England and France.
The Château de Gavaudun has been listed by the French Ministry of Culture as a monument historique
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...
since 1862.