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Origin and history

The castle of Bielle was erected between 1766 and 1770 on the initiative of Jean-Joseph de Laborde, an influential banker under Louis XV, who wished to offer it to his cousin Jean de Laborde in recognition for his introduction to the States of Béarn. This monument illustrates the classical architecture of the eighteenth century, with two identical facades of seven spans, central forebody surmounted by pediments, and a third level pierced by open skylights. The portal in hemicycle and the commons, added or redesigned in the 19th century, complete this harmonious ensemble.

Passed by inheritance, the estate passed to the grandson of Jean-Joseph, Jean-Benoît Fabien de Laborde (1804–54), mayor of Bielle and councillor general des Basses-Pyrénées. At his death his only daughter, Joseph de Cogombles' wife, inherited him in 1854. Since then, the castle has remained in the family of Cogombles. The interiors, entirely redesigned in the 19th century, reflect the tastes of that time, while the park and the commons were classified as Historic Monuments in 2004.

Today, Bielle Castle is a private property not open to the public. Its preserved architecture, combining classical rigour and subsequent developments, bears witness to the history of a lineage linked to the Bernese finance and nobility. The site also retains traces of a rectangular back garden and symmetrical outbuildings, organized around a service yard.

The building of the castle is part of a context of prosperity for local elites under the Old Regime, where seigneurial or bourgeois residences served both as a symbol of power and as a place of reception. In the Béarn, a region marked by a rural economy and dynamic trade, these houses reflected the social rise of families like the Laborde, while integrating architectural elements inspired by Parisian models.

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