The French province of New-Aquitaine is home to the castle known as Château de la Mothe-Chandeniers, or simply Château de la Mothe-Chandeniers. It is situated close to the village of Les Trois-Moutiers.
Within a region under the Motte de Bauçay lordship, the castle was constructed in the thirteenth century. Following Marie de Bauçay’s death, the property was initially inherited by the de Chaunay family and then by the de Rochechouart family. The castle enjoyed a heyday in the 1650s, mostly due to the efforts of François de Rochechouart, marquis of Chandoiseau. The marquis was actually banished from the French court due to his involvement in the Fronde revolt. The marquis was able to surround himself with thinkers and artists after retiring to his castle, which had assumed the name of the Mothe Chandeniers castle .
François de Rochechouart was compelled to sell the castle in 1668 to the Lamoignon family. As they had no male successors, René Charles de Maupeou, the king’s seal keeper, who had wed Anne-Victoire, one of his three daughters, inherited the property in 1766 [3]. René Nicolas de Maupeou, the first president of the Paris Parliament, was born out of this union.
After purchasing the now-ruined castle in 1809, François Hennecart carried out significant restorations, which included planting a vineyard on the castle’s grounds. Baron Edgard Lejeune, who will renovate it in keeping with the romantic style that was quite popular at the time, will inherit it.
The chapel and the outbuildings were the only parts of the castle that survived the devastating fire that struck on March 13, 1932. The owners were unable to reconstruct the damaged portions due to the extent of the losses. Ownership shifted to Crédit Lyonnais in the 1980s after initially going to businessman Jules Cavroy in 1963. Claude-Alain Demeyer is the last owner.
An organization dedicated to preserving the castle was founded in 2016. Currently being considered is a project to combine the ruins into a vacation town. A crowdfunding effort with 7,400 members will enable the project to obtain €500,000 for renovations.
