Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Gevrey-Chambertin is a medieval castle of the 11th century, originally a priory dependent on Cluny Abbey. In 1015 and 1019 Hugues de Chalon, bishop of Auxerre, and his sister Maheldis de Semur, heirs to Count Lambert de Chalon, donated the estate of Gevrey to Cluny, then led by Abbé Odilon. This site, built on a Gallo-Roman villa and surrounded by vineyards, becomes a priory organized in 1101, before being fortified between 1257 and 1275 under the impulse of Abbé Yves de Poisey and Yves de Chazan, from Vergy's house.

The fortress, transformed into a rectangle surrounded by ditches, includes a portery with drawbridge, a large square tower, a small round tower surmounted by a dovecote, and a wall with round path. The wars, lootings and fires of the 12th–13th centuries affected the castle, leaving intact only the gate (partly), the large tower and the adjacent housing body. After being sold as a national property in 1791, the castle changed hands until its acquisition in 2012 by a Chinese investor, Louis Ng Chi Sing, for about 8 million euros.

The 2.3 hectare wine estate in AOC Gevrey-Chambertin, estimated at 3.5 million euros, is entrusted to Armand Rousseau for its management. The castle, which has been listed as a historic monument since 1993, is not open to the public. Its architecture preserves Burgundian Romanesque features, with minor Gothic influences, and offers a panorama of the neighboring wines. The ditches, the gate and the towers still bear witness to its defensive past, while the inner halls, like the old chapter hall, remain inhabited.

The history of the castle is marked by its link with the Clunisian order, feudal conflicts in Burgundy, and its role in the local vineyard. The royalties associated with the castle fountain, fixed by Odilon de Cluny in the 11th century, illustrate its economic importance from the medieval period. After the Revolution, the castle passed into the hands of private individuals, including Jacques Masson in 1858, before his recent acquisition by a foreign actor, marking a turning point in his heritage and winemaking history.

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