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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de l'Épervière, located in Gigny-sur-Saône en Saône-et-Loire, is a building built in the 4th quarter of the 18th century. It consists of a main body flanked by two wings in return of square, framing a courtyard closed by a stone parapet. A stone bridge spans the ditches still visible north side, while a hemicircular forebody marks the southeast facade. The estate includes a large water room and a wooded park. Private property, it does not visit but has been listed as historical monuments since 1976.

The history of the site dates back to the 13th century, with a succession of castles in the same enclosure until the 18th century. In 1788 Baron Francis-Julien Geramb, former minister of Emperor Joseph II, acquired the ruins of the estate and built a new home there. During the Revolution, the castle was looted and abandoned, while the Geramb ladies (mother and daughter) were imprisoned in Chalon before returning to Gigny. The building was restored in 1830 by Arnoud de Joux de Ronfaud and again in 1966 by the Gay family.

The elements protected by the 1976 inscription include facades, roofs, the wrought iron gate and its gate. The castle illustrates late neo-classical architecture, mixing defensive heritage (fossed) and residential aesthetic (park, water room). Its history reflects the political and social upheavals of the late Old Regime and the 19th century, marked by phases of decline and rebirth.

Available sources, including Monumentum and Wikipedia, point to the poor accuracy of its location (note 6/10) and its approximate address: 8 Rue du Château, 71240 Gigny-sur-Saône. The castle remains a private testimony of local history, linked to European aristocratic figures like Geramb, Hungarian minister at the service of the Habsburgs.

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