Château de Vars

En un regard

Le château en bref

The Château de Vars (Charente), a former residence of the bishops of Angoulême, is said to have been built by Bishop Girard; it was taken by the English in 1421 and then razed by royal order. Rebuilt in the 15th century, probably by Bishop Raoul du Fou (crenellations), it became the bishops' summer residence in the 17th century under François de Péricard. The present building, on three levels, is a classical construction of the 17th–18th centuries, with a west façade featuring wide bays, a segmental pediment and, to the north, a tower from the old castle; it housed an archpriestry in 1761, and the east wing now serves as a presbytery.