The Château de Grâne is a ruined

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

in the '' commune'' of Grâne in the

Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Droma''; Arpitan: ''Drôma'') is the southernmost department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. Named after the river Drôme, it had a population of 516,762 as of 2019.

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

'' of France. The castle stands above the village of Grâne and is largely in ruins. Remains include sections of the curtain wall and a tower. The mounting for an old mullioned window and a spiral staircase are visible, as well as vaulted cellars from the 13th century.

History

Grâne's castle was one of the preferred dwellings of the

Counts of Poitiers Among the people who have borne the title of Count of Poitiers (, ; or ''Poitou'', in what is now France but in the Middle Ages became part of Aquitaine) are: *Bodilon * Warinus (638–677), son of Bodilon *Hatton (735-778) Carolingian Count ...

, who stored their archives and treasures there. The last Count of Poitiers, Louis II, having no legitimate male heir, was taken hostage at Grâne's castle for 15 days on 2 August 1416 by his cousins, Charles, the lord of

Saint-Vallier, Drôme Saint-Vallier (; ) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. It is an administrative, commercial and industrial town at the confluence of the rivers Galaure and Rhone. Geography The town is situated on the banks of the Rho ...

and the

Bishop of Valence The Diocese of Valence (–Die–Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux) (Latin: ''Dioecesis Valentinensis (–Diensis–Sancti Pauli Tricastinorum)''; French: ''Diocèse de Valence (–Die–Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux'') is a Latin Church diocese of the Cat ...

, Jean de Poitiers. They forced him to sign a

will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

in their favour. Once freed, the old count tried to annul the will by remarrying but failed to have any children. The Pope finally revoked the testament, signed under duress. The Domaine de Plaisance, comprising the castle in the village, as well as agricultural lands and a fortified house (''maison fort''), was created at the start of the 16th century by Bertrand Rabot, a Noble of the Robe. During the

Wars of Religion A religious war or a war of religion, sometimes also known as a holy war (), is a war and conflict which is primarily caused or justified by differences in religion and beliefs. In the modern period, there are frequent debates over the extent ...

(1562–98), the castle and particularly the ''maison fort'' were badly damaged. The Rabots returned in 1644 and renovated the buildings In 1792, Duchesne, a lawyer from

Grenoble Grenoble ( ; ; or ; or ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Isère Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region ...

, bought the castle and estate. He was later a delegate under the Directory and president of the

Tribunat The was one of the four assemblies set up in France by the Constitution of Year VIII (the other three were the Council of State (France), Council of State, the and the ). It was set up officially on 1 January 1800 at the same time as the . Its ...

under the

Consulate A consulate is the office of a consul. A type of mission, it is usually subordinate to the state's main representation in the capital of that foreign country (host state), usually an embassy (or, only between two Commonwealth countries, a ...

.Robert SERRE, ''Grâne, histoire d’un village du val de Drôme'' (1992) The castle, as part of the Domaine de Plaisance, has been listed since 1999 as a ''

monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

'' by the

French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture () is the ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of France in charge of List of museums in France, national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and pro ...

References

External links

* Ruined castles in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Monuments historiques of Drôme {{France-castle-stub

History

See also

References

External links