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Origin and history

The Tower of the Auditory, also known as the Tower of the Auditor, was the central dungeon of the Castrum of Belvès, a fortified complex probably built around 1095, simultaneously with the foundation of the Abbey of Fongauffier. No written source confirms its exact origin, but its location on a promontory overlooking the Nauze Valley suggests a defensive and strategic function. This castrum, lined with ramparts without niches but with an inner parapet, also housed a chapel Saint-Nicolas (destroyed in 1782) and several towers, only the tower of the Auditory and the remains of the doors.

In the Middle Ages, Belves was a seigneury shared, according to local tradition, between seven co-seigneurs, including one named Aymoin, quoted in a 1262 will. The archbishops of Bordeaux gradually became the principal temporal lords: an act of 1250 confirmed their authority, and Bertrand de Got (later Pope Clement V) and his nephew Arnaud de Cantelup enlarged the chestnut in 1307. The tower also served as an episcopal prison, as evidenced by the New Tower, and was the scene of conflicts during the Wars of Religion, notably during the siege of 1569 by Geoffroy de Vivans.

The tower was modified in the 15th century when William Philiparie, listener (hence his current name), installed a pigeon-house in 1562 with the agreement of Archbishop Antoine Prévost de Sansac. The ramparts, the source of disputes between the consuls of Belvès and the archbishops, were partially destroyed in the 18th century (gate Malbec shaved in 1774, piercing Rue des Filhols). The tower, the only surviving fortification, was listed as a historic monument in 1948. Its sober architecture — unique opening on the first floor, rare windows — reflects its initial defensive use.

The ancient excavations and texts evoke a troglodytic network in the ditch surrounding the castrum, as well as a false door near the current hospital. The castral chapel, dedicated to Saint Nicholas, was accessible by an alley perpendicular to Rue Rubigant. The Tower of the Auditory, with its later cover added, remains a symbol of the power struggles between lay lords and ecclesiasticals in Périgord, as well as urban transformations in modern and contemporary times.

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