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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Chassay Castle, located in Sainte-Luce-sur-Loire in the Loire-Atlantique, has its origins since the sixth century, in the location of a Roman villa named Cariacum, crossed by an ancient way leading to Nantes. A first castle, mentioned in 1096 as Chasseil, belonged to the bishops of Nantes. In the 15th century, Bishop Amauri acquired it surrounded by moat, but Francis II of Brittany seized it to make it a hunting pavilion, before returning it to the bishopric in 1500. The site then comprises two sets: the Little Castle (current building) and the Grand Manor House, now extinct.

In the 17th century, Bishop Gilles de Beauvau's statements described a domain composed of gardens, farmhouses and agricultural outbuildings. The Grand Mansion, consisting of three houses, was gradually abandoned and shaved in the 20th century when it was used by an artificial insemination centre. Sold as a national property in 1791 to a Norwegian shipowner, the castle was abandoned until it was bought by the Countess of Bondy in 1827. He then passed into the hands of the family of Fremond de La Merveillère, then into a union of agricultural cooperatives in 1956.

The castle was acquired by the municipality in 1974 and became the town hall of Sainte-Luce-sur-Loire. Extensions were built in 1989 to meet population growth. Until 2007, its facades served as a giant screen for pyrotechnic performances. Partially listed at the Historic Monuments in 2024, he retained Renaissance elements such as a dome-shaped rotunda, moats, and a shelled fountain, witness to his seigneurial and episcopal past.

The architecture of the castle, of Italian Renaissance style, dates mainly from the sixteenth century. The sources of the seventeenth century evoke two distinct buildings: the Little Castle (present) and the Grand Manor House, now extinct. The latter, composed of three houses and many outbuildings, was located north of the present castle. Delayed at an indeterminate date, its remains were transformed into agricultural buildings before being razed in the 20th century.

Among the notable events, Henry IV stayed there on 13 April 1598 with his sequel. The castle thus illustrates the links between the Royal Power, the Nantes Church and the Breton aristocracy. Its history also reflects the upheavals of the French Revolution (sale as a national good in 1791) and the rural economic changes, with its agricultural use in the 20th century before its municipal restoration.

Future

In 1974, it was bought by the commune, which established the town hall.

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