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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de Cordiron, located in Burgille in the Doubs, appeared as early as 1237 in a legacy of Stephen II d'Auxonne to his son Stephen d'Oiselay. It became the property of the lords of Cordiron, a branch of the family of Oiselay, until its extinction in 1378. The seigneury then passed into the hands of the families of Andelot, Ferriere, Balay, and then the Gorrevod, who took control of it at the end of the sixteenth century before its integration into the Marnay Marquisate in the seventeenth century.

In 1584, the castle comprises a house body, a barn, a wall, a tower with drawbridge and laying bridge, under the property of François de Gorrevod, Baron of Salins. In the 18th century, the tower was used as a prison by the family of Bauffremont, heiress of the Gorrevod. In the 19th century, the site deteriorated into a farm, suffering damage from abandonment.

Ranked a historic monument in 1979 (and then by a 2015 decree including the platform, ditch and remains of the wall), the castle has been subject to major restoration campaigns since 2001. The square tower (former 13th century dungeon) was restored in 2009 with the reconstruction of its roof, glass windows and oak doors. In 2018, the late Gothic fireplaces and part of the exterior walls are also renovated, preserving one of the last standing dungeons of Franche-Comté.

The architecture of the castle combines medieval elements (donjon, drawbridge) and Renaissance (logis of the 16th century accessible by a staircase with screws). The traces of the medieval drawbridge remain visible in the wall of enclosure connecting the dungeon to the body of houses. Recent work aims to restore its original state, while consolidating threatened structures, such as the southern facade.

Located in the centre of the former town of Cordiron (now merged with Burgille since 1972), the castle is located on D 149, at the address 1 chemin de la Tour. Its inscription as historical monument covers the square tower, the fortified gate, the staircase with screws, as well as the remains of the wall of enclosure and the ditch, spread over plots 142, 241 and 254 of the cadastre.

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