Château d'Ainay-le-Vieil

Ainay-le-Vieil

Occupying a site frequented since Gallo-Roman times, the château of Ainay-le-Vieil is mentioned as early as 1180 in the form "Ainacum Vetus". Its fortress with its octagonal enclosure, built in the 13th century and remodelled around 1330 by Gilles I de Sully, remained the only castle in the region to stay in French hands after the defeat at Poitiers in 1356. Passing by marriage to the barons of Culant in 1433, it was acquired in 1435 by the great royal financier Jacques Cœur, before being confiscated at his disgrace. Between 1500 and 1505, Charles de Bigny had a pre-Renaissance residence in the Louis XII style built against the medieval ramparts, with windows inspired by Italian villas; his grandson Gilbert, chamberlain to Catherine de' Medici, had a chapel built around 1527, adorned with wall paintings attributed to the workshop of Jean Boucher. This dual silhouette — a fortress closed to the outside, a residence opening onto its inner courtyard — has earned it the nickname of "little Carcassonne". Kept in the same family since 1467, down to the descendants of Colbert, the estate was opened to the public in 1954 by the barons d'Aligny, who created there the first Historic Route of France, now the Route Jacques-Cœur. The seven-hectare park, turned into an English-style garden in the 19th century, today carries the "Jardin remarquable" (Remarkable Garden) label.

Getting there : Open to visitors from April to November (variable hours), about 8 km south of Saint-Amand-Montrond via the D2, on the Route Jacques-Cœur; car park on site, 7 rue du Château.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound