Château du Vousset

En un regard

Le château en bref

The Château du Vousset stands about 2 kilometres north-east of the village of Verneuil-en-Bourbonnais, in the Allier department, halfway up a hillside reached by a track leading off the D18. Built mostly in the 16th century, it received painted decoration in the 17th century in a room on the first floor. The château is also known by the older name of Housset, a place name evoking spots where holly grows. It consists of a square main building (corps de logis) pierced with mullioned windows and flanked by round towers topped with lanterns. The estate also includes a perimeter wall and a dovecote. The château has been falling into disrepair since the 19th century: by 1908 the boundary walls had almost disappeared and the entrance gates were barely standing; in 2004 it was still recorded as abandoned. The painted decoration of the first-floor room, the perimeter wall and the dovecote were registered (inscrits) as historic monuments by order of 26 November 1990. The château, which is privately owned, is now at risk of collapse.