Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The château de la Chasse, located in Saint-Prix in Val-d'Oise, finds its origins at the beginning of the 13th century under the impulse of Mathieu II de Montmorency. Built as a hunting relay in the heart of the forest of Montmorency, it is inspired by the royal castles of the time, but in miniaturized version. Its name would come from the Gallois cassanos (chêne), reflecting its forest environment, rather than hunting, despite a 12th century Latin charter designating it as Chacia.

In the Middle Ages, the castle played a strategic role during the Hundred Years' War: it served as a garrison in 1418 and was taken by the English in 1429 as a base for their looting. He was also the scene of the Nivelle dispute in 1463, where John of Nivelle, disinherited by his father John II of Montmorency, inspired the expression "This dog of John of Nivelle". From the 16th century, the castle fell into disuse in the face of more luxurious residences like Écouen, although François I still hunted there.

In the 18th century, the grandson of the Grand Condé made his towers truncate in bias and covered them with tiles, giving it its present appearance. The castle then attracts figures such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who makes it his "working firm" in the forest, or naturalists such as Bernard de Jussieu and Louis-Augustin Bosc d的Antic. Under Napoleon I, it became a place of walk for Queen Hortense and the future Napoleon III. Abandoned in the 20th century, he was enrolled in the Historic Monuments in 1933, restored by the NFB from 1980 and transformed into an educational space.

Architecturally, the castle is a square of 20 meters side, with four towers connected by courtines. Reshaping (partial demolition, drilling of new windows) has altered its medieval character, but the northeast courtine retains sill windows and archers. Surrounded by three developed ponds, it now embodies an "architectural curiosity" within a preserved forest setting, accessible by educational trails.

The topography of the site reveals historical tensions: although located at the limit of Montlignon, the castle was attached to Saint-Prix after the Revolution through a deliberate territorial "exgrowth". Its current postal address (Montlignon) and its access through the forest — via a path of 800 meters from the D909 — underline this administrative duality. The family cemetery of Bosc, close by, also recalls the stays of 18th century naturalists.

Future

Today, the castle is no longer visiting, but the ground floor has been arranged to receive school groups or organize temporary exhibitions. Two educational trails are set up at the start of the castle, one on forest ecology and the other on forestry techniques.

External links