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Origin and history

The castle of Rilhat, located in Cognat-Lyonne in the Allier, is a mansion built in the 15th century, renovated in the 16th and 17th centuries. It presents a body of rectangular houses flanked by two round towers, typical of the Bourbonnais, and preserves defensive remains like a square tower and ruins of a second, collapsed at the beginning of the twentieth century. These towers once protected the entrance, surmounted by machicoulis, while another defensive tower was transformed into a dovecote. Inside, a painted floor ceiling from the end of the Renaissance and a ship's frame testify to its rich architectural past.

The initial construction, dated the 15th century, was marked by the wars of Religion. In January 1568, the battle of Cognat opposed Protestants and Catholics nearby, destroying the village and the nearby castle of Hautefeuille. The castle of Rilhat suffered damage, resulting in reshuffles, especially in the 17th century where its ceilings received painted decorations. In 1675 a chapel was mentioned, and in 1698 the intendant Le Vayer described it as "well built". During the Revolution, in 1794, Antoine Cariol applied the decree of destruction of feudal signs (fossed, duck, mâchicoulis), but the building survived.

Successive property of the Reclesne de Lyonne (until 1844), then of the Villardi de Montlaur (1844–1901) via the marriage of Eugene Joseph de Villardi with Léopoldine de Reclesne, the castle was sold in 1901 to M. Grange. In 1920, the property was dismantled, and the castle alone acquired by the Soucachet family. Ranked a historic monument in 1990, it retains protected elements such as the painted ceiling, the Pigeon Tower and a well. Its architecture and history make it a rare fortified vestige of the region, linked to the religious conflicts of the sixteenth century.

The site is also associated with local noble families, such as the Motier de La Fayette, owners of the Château de Hautefeuille destroyed in 1568. The interior decorations (painted olives, 19th century fireplace) and the carene frame reflect the stylistic evolutions between the Middle Ages and the modern era. Today, the castle remains a testimony of the architectural transformations and political upheavals that marked the Bourbonnais.

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