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Origin and history

The castle of Cognac, also named Château des Valois or Château François I, finds its origins in the 10th century with the construction of a wooden castrum by Hélie de Villebois, first lord of Cognac. Around the year 1000, the dynasty of the Villebois settled, and a village was formed around the Benedictine castrum and priory of Saint-Léger, founded in 1031. No trace of this first fortress remained, but medieval charters attest to its existence. The site, strategic on the banks of the Charente, becomes an issue for the local lords and the Counts of Angoulême.

In the 13th century, the Counts of Lusignan, successors of Taillefer, transformed the castle into a stone fortress and fortified the city. Guy de Lusignan, then his son Hugues X (spouse of Isabelle d'Angoulême, widow of John without Earth), mark this period. The castle changed hands several times during the Hundred Years War, passing between English and French. In 1366-1370 he even housed Edward of Woodstock, known as the Black Prince, the son of Edward III of England. The seigneury finally returned to the crown of France under Philippe le Bel, but conflicts persisted until Jean de Valois returned in 1450.

The 15th century inaugurated the Golden Century of the Valois in Cognac. Jean de Valois, Count of Angoulême, undertook the reconstruction of the castle in ruins with his wife Marguerite de Rohan. Their son, Charles de Valois, and his wife Louise de Savoie made it an intellectual and artistic home, welcoming their daughter Marguerite de Navarre and their son, the future François I, born in Cognac in 1494. Around 1517, François I enlarged the castle by adding a body of Renaissance houses facing the docks, marked by salamanders and his coat of arms. The sober facade, raised in the 19th century, preserves medallions carved with its effigy.

After a decline in the 17th and 18th centuries, the castle served as a prison during the Seven Years' War (1756-1757), where graffiti of foreign prisoners were still visible. Sold as national property after the Revolution, the premises were bought in 1795 by traders in brandies, Otard and Dupuy, who installed their cellars there. Although destruction took place (scraped in 1852, northeast tower in 1812), the company Otard carried out restorations. Today, the castle, private property, mixes medieval remains (the tower of Count Jean, the residence of the Governor) and Renaissance elements, testifying to its turbulent history.

The current architecture mainly reflects the work of the Valois. The tower of Count John (11th century) houses a rare medieval oven system and an inner well. The residence of the Governor, with its Gothic gate and its weapons fireplace of Valois-Angoulême, preserves remains of the 12th century (archatures, capitals). The vaulted cellars and guard rooms, decorated with 18th-century graffiti, recall the prison practices. The west facade, raised in 1852, dominates the quays of the Charente, while the two mâchicoulis towers (1499-1500) are the last remains of the ramparts.

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