Château de Champtoceaux

En un regard

Le château en bref

The castle and walled town of Champtoceaux are the ruins of a fortified complex in Maine-et-Loire, France, destroyed on the orders of John V of Brittany in 1420. The site was occupied as early as the Neolithic, and traces of buildings from the Roman Empire have been found there. Gregory of Tours mentions a castrum there in the 6th century. Located in the March of Brittany, Champtoceaux, then called Châteauceaux, lay in the 10th century on the border between the spheres of influence of the Dukes of Brittany, the Counts of Anjou and the Counts of Poitou. A fortress was built there that changed hands many times until the 15th century, withstanding nine sieges. John V of Brittany was taken prisoner there in 1420, in a conflict that combined rivalries between noble families of Brittany, a struggle for influence between the Kingdom of France and Burgundy, and the Hundred Years' War. Once freed, John V ordered the complete destruction of Champtoceaux. A new town then grew up to the east of the ruins, whose reoccupation was forbidden. Left as they were, the ruins became the subject of historical studies from the 19th century. William Turner painted them during his journey along the Loire in 1826. Now a place for walks, the site was registered as a historic monument in 2009.