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Origin and history

The castle of Bernssard, located in Gémozac in Charente-Maritime, has its origins in the 15th century, although its history dates back to at least the 14th century. At that time, the fief depended on Rioux, and Guillaume de Beaumont was the lord between 1373 and 1412. In 1445 Léon de Beaumont received the confession of Isabelle Fauresse for the lands of Bernssard, and in 1463 Jacques de Pons renounced his rights to the fief. These early records reveal an ancient seigneurial occupation, linked to local noble families such as the Beaumonts and the Pons.

In the 17th century, the castle passed into the hands of the Ancelin family, when Judith de Montgaillard, daughter of Geffroy de Montgaillard (Lord of Bernssard and La Touche), brought him in dowry to her husband Joël Ancelin in 1625. The latter, from a line of gentlemen close to the court, retains the estate until the Revolution. Their son, Christophe Ancelin, born in 1632 in the chapel of the castle, founded the branch of the Ancelin de La Garde, which will deeply mark the history of the place.

The French Revolution hit the Ancelin family hard in La Garde. Louis Ancelin, lieutenant of the ship and knight of Saint-Louis, was arrested in Bernssard in 1794, transferred to the Conciergerie, then guillotined in Paris on 11 July of the same year. Its properties, including the castle described as a large house with houses, outbuildings, gardens and moats, are confiscated and sold. However, his wife, Alexandrine de Morant, managed to buy a part of the estate, saving the castle from destruction.

In the 19th century, the estate remained in the Ancelin family until 1968, when it was sold to Montandon. The castle, which preserves medieval defensive elements (round towers, moats, courtines) and 17th and 19th century developments (gardens, architectural modifications), was listed as historical monuments in 2012. Today, it is home to an establishment helped by work, perpetuating its local anchor.

The architecture of Bernssard reflects its evolution: a medieval quadrilateral surrounded by moat, complemented by a lower courtyard and gardens built in the 17th and 19th centuries. Historical sources, including notarial archives and revolutionary minutes, document precisely its occupation by noble families and its transformations, while emphasizing its role as seigneurial residence and then as agricultural and social domain.

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