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Origin and history

The castle of the Dukes of La Tremeille, located in Thouars in the Deux-Sèvres, occupies a strategic site on a promontory overlooking a meander of the Thouet. Originally, a fort was erected there before being shaved in 762 by Pépin the Brief. A medieval castle replaced him, playing a key role during the Hundred Years' War, notably taken over by Bertrand du Guesclin in 1372. The Viscounty of Thouars, passed into the hands of the Tremoilus, was erected in duchy under Charles IX and confirmed under Henry IV.

In the 17th century, Marie de La Tour d'Auvergne, wife of Henri III de La Tremeille, demanded a more comfortable residence than the medieval castle. Initially planned as a modest pavilion, the project evolves under the direction of architect Jacques Lemercier: the old castle was razed in 1638 to give way to a monumental wing of 110 meters, connected to the collegiate Notre-Dame. The stables, added in 1707 by Robert de Cotte, replaced those of the sixteenth century, testifying to the vicomtal fascist.

After the Revolution, the castle, looted and nationalized, became sub-prefecture then barracks under the July monarchy. He was transformed into a prison from 1871 to 1925, and then hosted a public college and cultural institutions. The chapel, founded in the 16th century by Gabrielle de Bourbon, was erected as a collegiate chapel in 1515. The park, designed with the intervention of André Le Nôtre, disappeared, leaving only orangery, model for that of Versailles.

The sober, Louis XIII style architecture reflects the Calvinist influence of Marie de La Tour. The facade, inspired by the Tuileries and the Château de Richelieu, includes a central pavilion surmounted by a dome and symmetrical wings. Local materials (Vrines stone, tuft, slate) underline its regional anchor. Ranked a Historic Monument in 1862, the castle remains a major testimony of the French aristocratic heritage.

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