En un regard
Le château en bref
The Château de Tauriers overlooks the village of Tauriers and its church from a rocky outcrop in the Ardèche. The name Tauriers is recorded as a fief and a family as early as the 12th century; in 1198, an agreement between the Count of Toulouse and the Bishop of Viviers concerned half of the castle, before tensions arose between the two parties in 1208. The present keep, square in plan with a spur set against the south façade — an arrangement rare in the Vivarais — dates from the 13th century; it is built of fine regular ashlar and has four levels of vaulted rooms, served by a dog-leg staircase set within the thickness of the east wall. Defensive features, including machicolations, were added at the end of the Middle Ages. Guillaume de Tauriers was lord of the place in 1449; Béatrix de Tauriers married Mathieu de Sampzon in 1481. In 1691, Louis de Comte bought the lands and seigneuries of Tauriers; his descendant Jean-Louis de Comte won a lawsuit concerning these seigneuries between 1706 and 1721. A residential wing (logis) was added in the 17th century, completing the medieval keep in an L-shaped plan. The gateway is adorned with the arms and comital coronet of the de Comte de Tauriers family. Joseph de Comte de Tauriers took part in the assembly of the nobility in 1789. Registered as a historic monument (inscrit au titre des monuments historiques) by decree of 28 September 1926, the château remains private property, not open to visitors but clearly visible from the outside.
