Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Cabrespines Castle, located in Coubisou in Aveyron, finds its origins in the 12th–13th century with a first feudal building built on the promontory of Tourruol. This medieval castle, intended to protect the valley from invasions, became in the 13th century a residence of the Counts of Rodez. In 1274, Gui d'Estaing, owner of the castle rights, divested. The building was dismantled in 1628 by order of the prince of Condé, marking the end of his defensive function.

The reconstruction took place in the 2nd quarter of the 17th century, initiated by Jean de Cambon, last captain of the medieval castle. Authorized to use the stones of the old building, in 1643 he erected the western part of the present castle, whose date of 1646 was engraved on a lintel. The new castle, organised around a trapezoidal courtyard, combines defensive elements (square tower, foothills) and residential elements (Louis XIII woodworks, curved pediment staircase). The materials, small rubble and stone for frames, bear witness to this architectural transition.

In the 18th century, Philippe de Glandières united the buildings into one property, after a period of fragmentation between several families. The castle underwent major restorations in the early 2000s, including the reconstruction of roofs, the opening of bays, and the repair of the bread oven. Partially classified as Historic Monuments in 2016, it retains protected elements such as the facades of the southern house, the north tower, and the entrance gate.

The former feudal castle, now extinct, played a strategic role for the local population, offering protection against raids and serving as a symbol of Comtal power. Its destruction in the seventeenth century reflects the political upheavals of the era, while its reconstruction illustrates the adaptation of local elites to the new architectural and social norms of the classical period.

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