Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Augerville came into being in the 12th century, when the place was first mentioned in a charter of 1119. At the beginning of the 13th century, knight Philippe d'Augerville and his sons erected a fort with dovecote. In 1290, the Beaumont family, close to the kings of France, enlarged the castle, which became a strategic issue during the Hundred Years' War. Confiscated and then returned, he passed into the hands of John III of Beaumont, executed in 1367 for treason.

In the 15th century, Jacques Coeur, great silversmith of Charles VII, bought the castle in ruins after the Hundred Years' War, but he was condemned to exile before he could occupy it. The estate, seized and leased by his son Geoffroy, is finally inherited by James II Heart, who dilapidates it. In the 16th century, Mary Heart, the last direct heiress, restored the village and the castle thanks to the income of the royal fairs. The castle even welcomed Catherine de Medici and Charles IX in 1562, before passing to the Luilliers, senior Parisian officials.

The 17th century marked a turning point with Jean Perrault de Montrevost, secretary of the prince of Condé, who completely renovated the castle: redone facades, added wings, rebuilt dovecote and barn, and redesigned park with a sixteen-scented star. The estate, embellished to receive the nobility, became a place of resistance during the Fronde. However, Perrault's debts led to the seizure of the fief in 1676. The castle, after centuries of transformation, today embodies an architectural heritage combining the Middle Ages and classicism.

In the 18th century, the castle changed hands several times, suffering neglect and looting during the Revolution. The Dulau d'Allemans, the last lords, saw their estate confiscated and sold as national property. In the 19th century, the royalist MP Pierre-Antoine Berryer made it a venue for artists and writers, such as Chateaubriand or Liszt. After successive sales, the castle, partially classified at the Historic Monuments in 1976, is now a luxury hotel with golf, testifying to its past prestige.

The oldest still visible elements — round towers, moat and medieval platform — date back to the 12th–15th centuries. The dovecote of the seventeenth century, still functional with its swivel system, and the classified commons recall the seigneurial climax of the estate. The castle thus illustrates nearly nine centuries of history, from medieval knights to modern transformations.

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