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Château de Cruzille en Saône-et-Loire

Patrimoine classé
Patrimoine défensif
Demeure seigneuriale
Château de style Classique

Château de Cruzille

    Château de Cruzille
    71260 Cruzille
Private property
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Château de Cruzille
Crédit photo : DRANER71 - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Moyen Âge central
Bas Moyen Âge
Renaissance
Temps modernes
Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1300
1400
1500
1600
1700
1800
1900
2000
1262
First written entry
1589
Headquarters of the League
1594
Resumption by the Royals
1789
Revolutionary destruction
1944
Secret Army HQ
1946
Historical Monument
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

Castle (no CADASTRE box): inscription by order of 9 December 1946

Key figures

Georges de Bauffremont - Lord and Governor of Mâcon Terrorizes the region during the Wars of Religion.
Claude Rochat (commandant Guillaume) - Departmental Head of the Secret Army Install his PC at the castle in 1944.
Louise Courtin - Owner in 1944 Rocket for collaboration.
Jean de Nanton - Lord of Cruzille (1329) First certified member of the Nanton family.
Charles-François de La Baume - Lord Restaurator (XVIIe) Add the terraces to the castle.

Origin and history

Cruzille Castle, located on a rocky spur in Cruzille (Saône-et-Loire), is a medieval monument of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Its early architecture included a quadrilateral flanked by round towers (tour de Bourgogne, tour du Colombier, tour des Archives), one of which was replaced by a square tower. The western wing and the southwest tower disappeared during the fighting of the late 16th century, while the eastern wing, with its two round towers, still remains today. An alley of centuries-old lime trees once linked the castle to the church, where the seigneurial chapel is located.

The castle was the scene of violent clashes during the Wars of Religion. In 1589, he was attacked by leaguers, who pierced two breaches there before massacred the garrison. Retrieved by the royal troops in 1590, it was again taken by the League in 1592 and finally recovered in 1594. In the 17th century, the family of La Baume restored it and added terraces. During the Revolution, in 1789, rioters destroyed some of the decorations, including the carved balustrade of the staircase.

In the 20th century, the castle became a symbolic place of the Resistance: in 1944, it housed the command post of the secret army for the Saône-et-Loire, led by Claude Rochat (alias Commander Guillaume). A court of the French Forces de l'Intérieur judges nearly 300 cases, leading to 27 executions. After the war, the site was transformed into a medical-educational institution (IME, ITEP) for children in difficulty, a vocation which it retained until today. Ranked a historic monument in 1946, there remains a private property not open to the public.

The castle belonged to several noble families, including the Nantons (XIIIth–XVIth centuries), the Beauffremonts (XVIth century), and the Baume-Montrevels (XVIIth–XVIIIth centuries). These lords, often absent, preferred other residences such as the castle of Nobles or the castle of Sennecey. An ancient representation of the castle, designed in 1845 by the inspector of Rousselot Forests, is preserved at the Macon Academy. The coats of arms of the five noble families who possessed Cruzille illustrate his feudal history.

Architecturally, the castle blends defensive elements (round towers, missing slots) with Renaissance additions (stone staircase, gate in the middle of the hanger). The north-east tower, partially taluted, and north wing, though degraded, preserve traces of this past. The site, surrounded by classified terraces, dominates a landscape of valleys and vineyards, typical of Mâconnais. Its history reflects the political and military tumults of Burgundy, from the wars of Religion to the Second World War.

External links