Château de Châteauneuf en Boutières

En un regard

Le château en bref

Château de Châteauneuf en Boutières is located in the commune of Saint-Julien-Boutières (now Saint-Julien-d'Intres), in the Ardèche department, at the confluence of the Rimande and the Eyrieux. Built around the year 1000 on a rocky promontory, it was one of the principal fortresses of the Haut-Vivarais and marked the border between the dioceses of Le Puy and Viviers. The castle belonged to the Châteauneuf family, known from 1096 through the donation of the church of Saint-Julien to the monastery of Saint-Chaffre by Bertrand and Girin de Châteauneuf, descendants of the house of Chapteuil. It was held in co-lordship with the Brion family, cousins of the Châteauneufs, who also jointly owned the neighbouring Château de Rochebonne. The land was held of the lords of Mézenc, and several acts of homage were paid to the Bishop of Le Puy between 1229 and 1318. Guillaume de Châteauneuf, a member of this family, became Grand Master of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem in 1243. The castle played an important role during the Wars of Religion, before being dismantled around 1870, its stones being reused to build the church of Saint-Julien and several houses in the village. Today all that remains is a curtain wall about 26.70 metres long and the remains of a triangular tower, considered unique in the Vivarais. Owned by the commune, the site has been the subject, since 2021, of a project to enhance and consolidate it as a heritage site.