Beginning of archaeological excavations 2010 (≈ 2010)
Research campaigns on the site.
16 avril 2020
Registration for historical monuments
Registration for historical monuments 16 avril 2020 (≈ 2020)
Official protection of both mots.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
In total, the parcels on which two castral mots of Cabanac-et-Villagrains were originally raised, as well as their subsoil, namely parcels Nos.566, 570, 1271 and 1902, listed in cadastre section A, as shown in the plan annexed to the decree: inscription by order of 16 April 2020
Origin and history
The castral mots of Cabanac-et-Villagrains, also called Las Casterasses or Les Pujeaux, form a set of two fortified structures located 100 metres one from the other, north of the village of Cabanac. The name Casterasses evokes the Latin castra (plural castrum), a medieval term designating defensive sites of the first feudal period. These mounds, now partially wooded, illustrate the early military architecture of the Middle Ages, with ring ditches and typical earth lifts.
The first motte, 10 meters high with a diameter of 13 meters at the top and 30 meters at the base, is lined with a wide ditch of 12 to 15 meters. It is associated with an almost square enclosure of 30 meters side, surrounded by a second ditch and an inner rise of ground, suggesting a dungeon with a motte and its lowyard. The second motte, lower (4 meters) but wider (20 meters in diameter on the plateau), seems to play an advanced defensive role, although this arrangement remains atypical for classical castral mots. A third moth, now extinct, was located 800 metres downstream on the Gassies site; Its link with Casterasses (common defensive system or independence) remains hypothetical.
The site has been the subject of archaeological excavations since the 2010s, gradually revealing its history and organization. These remains, listed as historical monuments on April 16, 2020, belong to the municipality of Cabanac-et-Villagrains. Their preservation allows us to study local feudal dynamics and primitive fortification techniques in Aquitaine. Protected parcels (#566, 570, 1271, 1902) include mots and their basements, highlighting the archaeological importance of the site.
