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Origin and history

The castellas de Montpeyroux is a medieval fortress erected in 1070 by a descendant of Saint-Guilhem on the present commune of Montpeyroux (Hérault). Designed as a fortified aristocratic residence, it quickly turned into a village in the 12th century, attracting an increasing population. Its wall, still partially visible today, dates from this first period of occupation and is distinguished by its high crenellated walls and rectangular towers.

During the Hundred Years' War, the castle was partially destroyed in 1384 by British troops. It became a Protestant place in the 16th century and was besieged and taken in 1567 by the Marshal of Joyeuse. From the end of the 16th century, the site was gradually abandoned for the benefit of neighbouring hamlets, such as Barry and Adisse, the latter becoming the centre of the present village of Montpeyroux. The remains were reoccupied in the 19th century by a convent, whose chapel Notre-Dame de la Salette (1863) is the only structure still visible today.

The excavations and historical documents reveal an occupation prior to 1070, with a castrum mentioned as early as 999 in Gellone cartular. The site, strategically placed on a height overlooking a transhumance road, was controlled by the lords Raymond de Montpeyroux, who also owned the Château des Deux-Vierges in the south. The present enclosure probably corresponds to the original external fortification, although the central buildings (donjon, Chapele Castrale Saint-Pierre) disappeared, demolished during the construction of the convent in 1864.

Today, the castellas has been protected under the Historic Monuments since February 2025. Its ruins, owned by the department of l'Hérault, testify to its evolution: first seigneurial fortress, then medieval village, refuge during the wars of Religion, and finally place of worship in the nineteenth century. The visible remains thus combine elements from the 12th–15th centuries with more recent additions, such as the Chapel of La Salette.

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