Lauriat Castle

En un regard

Le château en bref

Near Beaumont, in the countryside around Brioude, Lauriat Castle is a former seigneurial house whose surviving buildings are attributed to the 13th century, on a site said to have been fortified as early as around the year 1000. Its main interest lies in the continuity of its seigneurial line, documented over four centuries. Held in the 15th century by the Rochefort d'Ally, it passed around 1480 to the Saint-Haon (or Saint-Ahond) through the marriage of Dauphine de Rochefort d'Ally, then, through successive marriage alliances, to the Pélacot at the end of the 16th century and to the Gouzel around 1640. The latter kept it until the Revolution: the last lord, Marc de Gouzel, regarded as an émigré, saw the estate sold as national property. He is still remembered locally for a renowned remedy against rabies, which he passed on before his death in Brioude in 1818. The remains, described as a cylindrical keep together with vestiges of an enclosure wall and living quarters, are now inhabited by private individuals and are not open to visitors.