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Effiat Castle dans le Puy-de-Dôme

Patrimoine classé
Patrimoine défensif
Demeure seigneuriale
Château de style Classique
Puy-de-Dôme

Effiat Castle

    Impasse des Gardes 
    63260 Effiat
Château dEffiat
Château dEffiat
Château dEffiat
Château dEffiat
Château dEffiat
Château dEffiat
Château dEffiat
Château dEffiat
Crédit photo : Jastrow - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Moyen Âge central
Bas Moyen Âge
Renaissance
Temps modernes
Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1100
1200
1500
1600
1700
1800
1900
2000
1120
First mention of the seigneury
1557
Acquisition by Gilbert Coiffier
1626-1628
Construction of the castle
1630-1632
Urban and religious development
1714
Military School Foundation
1856
Purchase by Moroges
1942, 2004
Historical monuments
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

Façades and roofs of the building of the communes (Case E 554): inscription by order of 6 June 1980 - The castle as well as the gardens with moats, the entrance gate, the nymphae, the terraces, the chapel, part of the communes and the farm (cad. E 501-507, 556, 557, 1009, 1010, 1098): by order of 10 March 2004

Key figures

Antoine Coëffier de Ruzé d'Effiat - Marshal of France and Marquis Commander of the castle, near Richelieu.
Jacques Lemercier - Architect Manufacturer of the castle (1626-1628).
Clément Métezeau - Architect Lemercier's collaborator on the project.
André Mollet - King's gardener Author of gardens and terraces.
Jean Languille - Sculptor Author of the decoration of the monumental door.
Louis Charles Antoine Desaix - General Former student of Effiat Military School.

Origin and history

The Château d'Effiat, located in the Puy-de-Dôme in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, was built between 1626 and 1628 under the impulse of Antoine Coëffier de Ruzé d'Effiat, Marshal of France and close to Richelieu. This ambitious project, inspired by the cardinal's urban ideas, aimed to create a new geometric city, with the help of architects Jacques Lemercier and Clément Métezeau, as well as gardener André Mollet. The castle, framed by pavilions and surrounded by moat, symbolized the power of this family, anobligated in the 16th century after its role in the wars of religion and its rallying to Henry III.

The estate initially included a church, a college of the Oratory (founded in 1714 as a Royal Military School), and a hospital, built between 1630 and 1632. When the Marshal died in 1632, the town project was abandoned, but the castle remained a place of influence, housing a military school where General Desaix studied. The castle's wings, destroyed in the 19th century, and its scattered furniture (including paintings inspired by L-Orlando furioso today at the Roger-Quilliot Museum) bear witness to its long history.

Ranked a historic monument in 1942, then in 2004 for its gardens, its nymph and its commons, the castle of Effiat embodies the French classical architecture of the Grand Siècle. Its carved decoration, attributed to Jean Languille, and its terraces designed by Mollet reflect the ambition of a marquisat at the service of the crown. Acquired in 1856 by the family of Moroges, he retained part of his movable heritage at the Louvre and the National Furniture, recalling his role in the cultural and military history of the Auvergne.

External links