Château de Châlus-Chabrol

The Château de Chalus-Chabrol (Occitan Limousin : Chasteu de Chasluç-Chabròl) is a castle in the commune of Châlus in the département of Haute-Vienne, France.[1]

Château de Chalus-Chabrol
Château de Châlus-Chabrol by Ildo Moratti

The castle dominates the town of Châlus. It consists today of an isolated circular keep (12th century) and a residential building constructed between the 11th and 13th centuries, enlarged in the 17th century.[1]

The castle protected the southern approach to Limoges and the north-south route between Paris and Spain, as well as the ancient east-west route linking the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.

It is most famous for the death of King Richard the Lionheart, who died there while besieging the castle in 1199 from a crossbow bolt fired, according to legend, by one of the defenders called Bertrand de Gourdon. His entrails are buried in the castle chapel.[2]

The castle's owners included Charlotte of Albret and Louise Borgia, respectively wife and daughter of Cesare Borgia.

Château de Chalus-Chabrol has been listed as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture since 1925.[1]

  • The castle in 1460
  • General view
  • Memorial to Richard I

See also

References
  1. Base Mérimée: Château fort de Chalus, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
  2. Flori, Jean (1999), Richard Coeur de Lion: le roi-chevalier p. 235 (in French), Paris: Biographie Payot, ISBN 978-2-228-89272-8

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