Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Bonnais, located east of the municipality of Coust in the department of Cher, finds its first historical records under the name Bonayo in 1274, during the marriage of Amisius de Bonayo with Benvenuta. The written traces then evolved with the spellings Bonnay (1435), Bonay (1454, 1569), before adopting its present form in 1774. The family of Bonnais, seigneurial, marked the history of the place from the thirteenth century, with notable alliances such as that of Arnoul de Bonay, Marshal of Berry, marrying Ysabeau de Sancerre around 1384. Their line gradually ceased, the last known lord of the name being Paul de Bonay in 1613.

In the 17th century, the castle passed into the hands of the family of Aubigny, already established in Bourbonnais with lands like Nereux or Chameron. He became seigneur in 1669, followed by Antoine-François, knight and seigneur of Bonnais in 1768. The Revolution marked a tragic turning point: Jean-Claude-Gilbert d'Aubigny, born in Bonnais in 1736, vicar then canon in Bourges, was arrested in 1793 for refusing the civil constitution of the clergy. Deported on the pontoons of Rochefort in 1794, he found his death there, sealing the end of the seigneurial era of the Aubigny.

The architecture of the castle, mainly dated from the end of the 15th century, presents a square plan flanked by six towers, including an octagonal housing the honorary staircase, characteristic shared with the castles of Gien and Jalanges. A Louis XIV portal, added in the 17th century, and moat fed by the Chignon Creek complete the defensive ensemble. The site, partially restored, now hosts a cottage and the festival Trois Jours en Coust, contributing to its heritage value.

The moats of the castle are also linked to local history, shared with those of the old Castel de Saint-Amand-Montrond via the Chignon stream, tributary of the Marmande. This hydraulic network illustrates the integration of the monument into a broader defensive and agricultural system, typical of the castles of the Centre-Val de Loire region.

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