Tour du Moulin Neuf

En un regard

Le château en bref

The Tour du Moulin Neuf stands in the middle of a pond in the commune of Châtel-de-Neuvre, in the Allier department. A first structure existed there in the early 14th century, on land belonging to the lords of Montaigu-le-Blin. Occupied by the English around 1365, it was rebuilt as a monumental keep in the second half of the 14th century, around 1370, on the initiative of Duke Louis II de Bourbon, in order to watch over the roads of the region and control the crossing of the Allier. The building rises to about 36 metres including its roof and contains a spiral staircase, a monumental fireplace, a chestnut-wood roof frame and a wall walk. Over the centuries, the lordship changed hands several times: in 1494 it passed by marriage to the Dugué family, then successively to the Ripoud, Balarre, Roussel, Semyn de Saint-Sernin and Sicaud de Mariol families, before being acquired in the 19th century by Count Achille Vemin d'Aigrepont, whose descendants still own it today. The tower is private property; access is restricted and is only possible as part of guided tours, notably outside July and August.