Concressault () is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

department in the

Centre-Val de Loire Centre-Val de Loire (, , ,In isolation, ''Centre'' is pronounced . ) or Centre Region (french: région Centre, link=no, ), as it was known until 2015, is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France. It straddles the middle Loire Valley ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

of France.

Geography

Concressault is a small farming village situated by the banks of the

Sauldre The Sauldre (, ) is a long river in central France, a right tributary of the Cher. Its source is near the village of Montigny, southwest of Sancerre. The Sauldre flows generally northwest, through the following departments and towns: * Cher: ...

river, north of

Bourges Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry. History The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, t ...

at the junction of the D8 with the D11 and D21 roads.

Population

History

In the medieval period, Concressault was surrounded by fortifications and therefore had the status of "city". The village developed itself around a castle built some distance aside of the older village of Dampierre-en-Crot. The new village ended up, at some point in the past, being more important than the first one.

The castle

In his manuscript on the Berry,Description du Berry et diocèse de Bourges au XVI^e siècle, par Nicolas de Nicolay'' publié ��par Victor Advielle, Paris, 1865 (le manuscrit est daté de 1567). Nicolas de Nicolay gave up a description of the castle as it was in 1567. According to him, he fortress got ruined by the English during the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453). A short time after the destruction it got rebuilt in a more solid form by the Duke Jean de Berry (1340–1416). The castle had an hexagonal shape, with 32 meters high and 12 meters thick walls made of hard rocks. Buildings were built out of colored bricks and covered by slate. The moats were 32 meters large and 4 meters deep. Sir

John Stewart of Darnley Sir John Stewart of Darnley, 1st Comte d'Évreux, 1st Seigneur de Concressault, 1st Seigneur d'Aubigny (1429) was a Scottish nobleman and famous military commander who served as Constable of the Scottish Army in France, supporting the French ag ...

, a Scottish nobleman, was awarded the title of "Lord of Concressault" thanks to his participation to the Battle of Baugé. In March 1423, he also becomes the Lord of

Aubigny-sur-Nère Aubigny-sur-Nère () is a town and commune in the Cher department in the administrative region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. Geography An area of forestry and farming surrounding a small light industrial town, situated in the valley of the r ...

. Under the reign of Charles VII (1422–1462) the castle was besieged again by the English who were not able to take control of it. Chased by the French, they mistook a narrow pit for the Sauldre river, that they thought they could pass through a ford. Many of them sank and the pit got called "la fosse aux Anglais" (literally: the pit of the English).

Sights

* The church of St. Pierre, dating from the fifteenth century * The ruins of a fourteenth-century castle, destroyed by the English during the

Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...

* Two old

watermill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production of ...

s and ancient barns at the Domaine du Moulin au Riche * A museum, the Musée de la Sorcellerie

Geography

Population

History

The castle

Sights

See also