Château de Montaner
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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 Montaner
Montaner
Montaner is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France.-References:*...
in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Pyrénées-Atlantiques is a department in the southwest of France which takes its name from the Pyrenees mountains and the Atlantic Ocean.- History :...
département of southern France.
Thee castle was built in the 14th century on the orders of Gaston Fébus
Gaston III of Foix-Béarn
Gaston III/X of Foix-Béarn, also Gaston Fébus or Gaston Phoebus was the 11th count of Foix, and viscount of Béarn . Officially, he was Gaston III of Foix and Gaston X of Béarn.-Early life:...
to protect the frontiers of Béarn with Bigorre
Bigorre
Bigorre is region in southwest France, historically an independent county and later a French province, located in the upper watershed of the Adour, on the northern slopes of the Pyrenees, part of the larger region known as Gascony...
and Armagnac. The architect, Sicard de Lordat
Sicard de Lordat
Sicard de Lordat was a 14th century architect from the County of Foix, now in modern-day France, who worked for Gaston Fébus . He is noted particularly for working with brick, a material that was cheap and allowed speedier contsruction.-Works:*Château de Montaner*Château de Morlanne*Keep of the...
, was also responsible for the Château de Pau
Château de Pau
The Château de Pau is a castle in the centre of Pau, the capital of Pyrénées-Atlantiques and Béarn. King Henry IV of France and Navarre was born here on December 13, 1553....
and the Château de Morlanne
Château de Morlanne
The Château de Morlanne is a restored castle in the commune of Morlanne in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France.This imposing brick fortress, forming a polygonal enceinte, is a powerful 14th century structure with gateways, a courtyard, moats and a high keep...
and is noted for utilising brick in his constructions, its advantages being comparative cheapness and speed.
It includes a vast polygonal enceinte
Enceinte
Enceinte , is a French term used technically in fortification for the inner ring of fortifications surrounding a town or a concentric castle....
with 20 sections supported by buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es with two gateways and a 36 metre high square 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...
, accessed by a swing bridge. Above the door to the keep is the majestic coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
of Foix-Béarn, itself capped with the words "Fébus mé fé" ("Fébus made me"). Since 1854, the Castle has been owned and managed by the Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Pyrénées-Atlantiques is a department in the southwest of France which takes its name from the Pyrenees mountains and the Atlantic Ocean.- History :...
département. In summer, numerous spectacles and exhibitions are organised on the theme of the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
.
The castle has been listed on the French Ministry of Culture's inventory of historic buildings since 1973 and classified 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 1980.