The Château de Leynes is an old fortified

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

and priory in the ''

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 ...

'' of Leynes in the

Saône-et-Loire Saône-et-Loire (; Arpitan: ''Sona-et-Lêre'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the rivers Saône and Loire, between which it lies, in the country's central-eastern part. Saône-et-Loire is ...

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. Ninety- ...

'' of France. The estate of Leynes was granted by

Charles the Bald Charles the Bald (french: Charles le Chauve; 13 June 823 – 6 October 877), also known as Charles II, was a 9th-century king of West Francia (843–877), king of Italy (875–877) and emperor of the Carolingian Empire (875–877). After a s ...

in a charter dated 19 March 875 to Tournus Abbey, a gift confirmed by the Pope in 1119. The castle however, also the property of the abbey of Tournus, is not recorded until a document of 1423 mentions it for the first time in connection with the civil war between the

Armagnacs The Armagnac faction was prominent in French politics and warfare during the Hundred Years' War. It was allied with the supporters of Charles, Duke of Orléans against John the Fearless after Charles' father Louis of Orléans was killed on a ...

and the Burgundians, when the Armagnacs occupied it. The castle was plundered, besieged and burned several times, principally in 1471 by the troops of

Louis XI Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (french: le Prudent), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revol ...

, and in 1593 by the lord of Nogent and his soldiers. It remained in a ruined state for more than a century before the abbey was forced by its condition to carry out emergency repairs in 1716. The castle today has been renovated and is used as a guest house and ''

gîte A gîte () is a type of accommodation that comes in a variety of forms, ranging from a gîtes d'etape, a hostel, for walkers and cyclists, to a gîte rural, a holiday home in the country available for rent, often an accessory dwelling unit. The te ...

''.

References

Castles in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Saône-et-Loire {{France-castle-stub

See also

References