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Origin and history

Comblat Castle, located in Vic-sur-Cère in the Cantal, is an emblematic monument combining medieval and classical architecture. Built in the 15th century, its dungeon was rebuilt in the 16th century, then completed at the beginning of the 18th century by a southern wing of classical style, with refined interior decorations (lambria, painted fireplaces). This castle was for three centuries (1586–89) the residence of clerks and vice-baillis entrusted with pacifying the Haute-Auvergne. Its outbuildings (chapel, garden pavilion, commons) and its park with terraces and pond probably date back to this classic period.

The site occupies the site of an ancient fort named Valleyranne, mentioned from the 12th century. In 1439, Bernard Armagnac obtained permission to erect a new castle, corresponding to the present dungeon. The chapel, added in 1513, and the living wing (dated 1740) were commanded by successive noble families, including the Lacrière de Comblat, vice-baillis de Haute-Auvergne. The castle, completely protected since 2002, preserves exceptional interiors: medieval cuisine, archive room, vestibule with staircase, and 18th century rooms.

The Comblat toponym (formerly Comlat) originally designates a relief or a village, linked to several local entities (bridge, manorhouse, favars). The seigneurial families of Cère, Gaucelm, Palach, Vixouze and Cabanes-Comblat marked its history. In the 16th century, John de Cabannes, captain of the French Guards, wrote a plan of pacification for Henry III. In the 18th century François-Louis Lacrière, involved in the Auvergne Coalition, was shot in 1795, leaving the estate to his daughter Amélie, who handed it to the Baume Pluminel.

In the 19th century, Henry Gabriel de la Baume Pluminel modernized the estate (silver medallion in 1884 for his irrigation work) and welcomed the painter Paul Signac (1886–88). His nephew, astronomer Aymar de la Baume, heir in 1896, contributed to local cultural life before bequeathing Comblat in 1949 to the Department of Cantal. Transformed into an agricultural college, the castle today retains its park and its classified decorations, witness to its historical and architectural role.

The castle illustrates the evolution of medieval fortresses into seigneurial residences and then agricultural estates. Its inscription in the Historical Monuments underscores the richness of its interiors (monumental paths, painted hazes) and its outbuildings (garden pad, chapel). The archives also mention a Paleolithic site nearby (Comblat-le-Pont), recalling the former occupation of the site. The portraits of the Lacrière ancestors, given at the Aurillac Museum, complete this memorial heritage.

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