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Origin and history

The Clermont dungeon, also known as the Castle of Counts of Clermont, is an 11th century feudal vestige located in the town of Clermont (Oise). Built on a promontory, this quadrangular dungeon (25.50 m x 17.50 m) dominated the city and served as a power center for the county, stretching from Beauvais to Creil. Its thick walls of 4 meters, in assembled bellows, and its eight foothills testify to its defensive function. A first wooden castle, surrounded by a slope, would have existed in the tenth century to protect itself from Norman invasions.

In the 12th century, Clermont was girdled with walls, and the castle was equipped with ramparts, a water ditch, a drawbridge and a fortified gate (Donjon Street). The outer enclosure included a steep north slope, a corner tower, and fortifications along the street of the City Tower. A collegiate assembly, rebuilt by Count Renaud II and signed in 1114, was inside the castle. It was replaced by the Church of St. Samson in 1359. Remnants of this college remain in the Nointel Gate and the town hall.

The dungeon was occupied by the Counts of Clermont, including Robert de France (son of Saint Louis) and his wife Béatrice de Bourgogne. In the 16th century, it housed flats, a prison, a room for interrogation, and a treasure. In 1702, the Princess of Harcourt transformed him into a residence, filling part of the ditches to create the Châtellier Park. She built a new collegiate church in 1714, with a bell tower and funeral vaults, accessible by a staircase of 60 steps.

Confiscated during the Revolution (1790), the dungeon served as a prison for Soissons suspects under Robespierre, then as a central house for women from 1826. Louise Michel, figure of the Paris Commune, was detained there from 1883 to 1884. Sold as a national property in 1798, it became a correction house in 1805 and then a preservation school in 1908. During the Second World War, the Germans used it as a place of internment (1942).

Ranked a historic monument in 1950, the dungeon suffered partial collapse in 1984 due to a storm. Purchased by the city of Clermont in 1968, it was finally acquired definitively in 1970. Today, projects aim to refurbish its surroundings, including a green theatre and direct access to the Châtellier Park. Its dimensions (30 m high, 130 m above sea level) make it a visible landmark at more than 10 km in good weather.

Architecturally, the Clermont dungeon shares similarities with those of Loches, Beaugency, or Ghent (Belgium), notably by its quadrangular shape and its dimensions. Its walls, with 24 windows per facade, and its vaulted ground floor reflect medieval construction techniques. The architect Godde changed his roof in 1806, removing a tower embedded in the northeast façade.

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