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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Château de la Bâtie, located in Montceaux in the Ain, is an ancient castle whose first records date back to the thirteenth century, although its foundation may date from the twelfth. Built by the Beaujeu family, it was a major stronghold with 19 towers and 60 gunmen, playing a strategic role between the lands of the Kingdom of France and those of the Empire. He then passed to the Bourbons, then to noble families such as the Juys, the Saix, and the Champiers, who made him a baronie in the 16th century.

In the 16th century, the castle was redesigned with the addition of a vaulted gallery masking Gothic elements, and decorative paintings (including a macabre dance) decorated the dungeon. The castral chapel, initially isolated, was integrated into the castle. The transformations continued in the 18th and 19th centuries, where the fortress became a residence: bays were pierced, and part of the inner enclosure destroyed. The family of Ormesson de Chamarande, then that of the Vidaud Tower, were the owners until the Revolution.

The castle housed a military garrison and served as a refuge for resistance during the Second World War, including Jean Moulin. After the Revolution, it became a private residence, now belonging to the family of Chalon. Ranked a Historic Monument in 2006, it illustrates the architectural evolution of the fortresses of the Dombes, in red bricks ("Savoyard Carrons"), and its role in local history, from medieval seigneury to the Resistance.

The chapel, dedicated to Saint Maurice, was transferred to the enclosure in the 15th century and houses an crypt. The site, with its outbuildings and parcellar, is protected for its military and historical heritage, testifying to the successive changes between the Middle Ages and the modern era.

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