Château de Saint-Bernard

En un regard

Le château en bref

Château de Saint-Bernard (formerly Saint-Barnard) is a former fortified castle dating from the late 13th or early 14th century, altered in the 17th century and restored in the 19th century. It was the centre of the seigneury of Saint-Barnard, in the commune of Saint-Bernard in the Ain department. First owned by the Palatins de Riottières, it was sold in 1250 by Guillaume Palatin to Guichard V, lord of Beaujeu, and then belonged to the Church of Lyon until 1599. It subsequently passed to Martin de Covet, lord of Montribloud (1599), to Quirin-Henri de Cazenove (1801), to Daniel Bellet de Tavernost (1808), and then to Baron Gabriel Bourlier d'Ailly and his descendants. Between 1917 and 1923, it belonged to Antoine Goujot-Pontet of Amplepuis and then to the painters André Utter and Suzanne Valadon. Rectangular in plan, it retains two round corner towers flanking one of the short sides and a tall main residential building (logis), formerly topped by a wall-walk; a square gate tower gives access to the courtyard. The castle, together with its lower courtyard (basse-cour) and the footprint of the former moats, has been listed as a monument historique by order of 10 April 1997 (reference PA00116614).