Château de Margeleix

En un regard

Le château en bref

The Château de Margeleix, at the locality of Margeleix in the commune of Puy-Malsignat (Creuse), was probably built in the 17th century as a residence without military defences. In the second half of the 18th century, the Marquis de La Fayette spent part of his childhood there, its owner Antoine Gilbert François Nicolas Foureton having been his military tutor. The main building, rectangular in plan and on two levels with a central straight staircase, retains in its great hall beams adorned with painted decoration of foliage scrolls and flowers in blue camaïeu, as well as carved panelling; one bedroom features moulded joinery and painted decoration of foliage, flowers and animals on its beams and joists. The estate includes a chapel, a dairy, a bakehouse, mansard-roofed granaries, a barn and a small pond. The two decorated rooms on the ground floor are classified, and the rest of the château, the chapel and the well in the courtyard are listed (inscrits) as historic monuments by decree of 17 April 1984. The chapel houses Aubusson-inspired stained-glass windows made by Jean Fourton, Jean-François Guinot, Bernard Battu and Michel Cancalon, in memory of all deportations. A private property, the château is not open to visitors.