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Origin and history

Genoud Castle, located in Certines, Ain, is an ancient castle built in the early 14th century. It was rebuilt in the 15th and 16th centuries and later restored. The center of the seigneury of Genost, it originally belonged to the noble family of Genost, quoted from 1300. The current structure preserves medieval elements, such as a square tower raised around 1853, as well as hemicycle communes surrounding the main entrance.

The seigneury of Genost, in all justice, passed into the hands of several families by inheritance or sale. Pierre de Genost, knight, was the first known owner (1300-1330). After the extinction of the line around 1530, the estate fell to François and Claude de la Cous, then to Philibert de La Chambre in 1608. In 1624, Hector de Bellet became the owner by court auction, before the castle passed to the Catin and Espiard de la Cous families by marriage alliances.

The castle, partially listed as historical monuments in 2006, includes protected facades and roofs, as well as a walkway of plane trees and a well. An engraving from the early 19th century revealed its state of degradation at that time, before subsequent restorations. Originally, the ensemble consisted of three towers and two drawbridges, dismantled during the Revolution. The house, dated 1672, preserves an interior of the nineteenth century, marked by the addition of a staircase of access to the tower.

The architect Louis Dupasquier intervened during the 19th century restorations. Today, the castle is distinguished by its green environment and its aisle of poplars leading from the village. The semicircular commons, visible on a cadastre of 1808, always frame the main entrance, showing the stability of its structure since this period.

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