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Origin and history

Fontariol Castle is an ancient strong house probably built at the end of the 15th or early 16th century, typical of the Bourbon manors of that time. Located on the north slope of a hill at 450 m above sea level, it overlooks a historic Roman road from Bourges to Lyon, now replaced by the road from Saint-Pourçain-sur-Sioule to the Montet. The building, surrounded by walls and agricultural buildings, consists of a body of quadrangular houses with two round towers, one of which houses a spiral staircase and a dovecote.

In the 18th century, the castle belonged to Marguerite Louan de Fontariol, who passed it on in 1775 to his nephew, the Marquis de Tilly. Four years later, in 1779, he passed into the hands of Gilbert de Boucaumont des Garennes. Its architecture preserves defensive elements such as murderers and stone-crossed windows, reflecting its late medieval origin. The south and east facades, as well as the towers, illustrate the style of the seigneurial buildings between Berry and Bourbonnais.

Ranked a historic monument in 2010, Fontariol Castle is fully protected, including its communes, its wall and courtyard. This status underscores its heritage importance as a preserved example of bourbon's strong houses. Its isolated location in the bocage, 3 km from the village of Theil, reinforces its character as a rural seigneurial residence, linked to local history and old communication networks.

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