Château de Monsec

En un regard

Le château en bref

Perched on a promontory rising more than eighty metres above the Dordogne valley, the Château de Monsec overlooks the village of Mouzens, in the Périgord Noir. Built from the 14th century onwards on older foundations, the building went through several construction campaigns: wings from the 15th and 16th centuries, an entrance gatehouse (châtelet) from the early 17th century, a Renaissance residence, then a series of Neo-Gothic alterations in the 19th century (south-east tower, turrets, a chapel designed by the architect Henri Nallet, a tower bearing a statue of the Virgin). The façades carry unusual sculpted decoration depicting demons, witches and acrobats. The château, its outbuildings (caretaker’s lodge, barns, stables, riding hall, kennels), its park and its terraces have been registered as historic monuments (inscrits au titre des monuments historiques) since 1 March 2005. The painter Maurice Utrillo depicted the château in 1935, and Léon Poirier’s film “Jeannou” was shot there in 1943. Jeanne de L’Épinois, awarded the Legion of Honour for her actions during the First World War, rests in the chapel of the estate, which is privately owned by the SCI du château de Monsec.