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Origin and history

The Château de la Foix, also known as Château de la Foy, is located in the commune of Mouthiers-sur-Boëme, in Charente, near Angoulême. Its origin dates back to 1094, when the Lord Chandéric de Mouthiers founded a monastic annex to the Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Martial de Limoges. This site, originally religious, became a noble fiefdom marked by a strong house in the 14th century, as evidenced by the preserved archeries. The chapel, destroyed during the Hundred Years' War, disappeared permanently, and the estate passed under the control of the secular clergy in 1536.

In the 17th century, the castle belonged to the Vigier family, notable of Angoumois, before changing hands several times by marriage, sales or inheritance: the families of the Refuge (1635), of Chambes (until 1814), then Dexant (until 2017) succeeded them. The current architecture reflects two major phases: the northern part, dated from the 15th to the 16th centuries, preserves defensive elements such as murderers and a scald, while the southern extension, added in 1719, incorporates Regency-style salons and Louis XIV and Louis XVI chimneys. The kitchen, with its slatting floor, and the parqueted rooms illustrate this evolution.

The estate is organized around a rectangular building open on a terrace overlooking the valley, surrounded by a wall of enclosure flanked by square pavilions. Although classified as a historical monument in 1963 for its facades and roofs, the castle remains a private property not open to the public. His name, sometimes spelled "the Foix" on old maps, is a fantasy variant with no historical basis.

The sources emphasize its initial role as a monastic dependency, then as a seigneurial residence transformed over the centuries. The protected elements include the vaulted corridor in cut stone, the kitchen with its walls, and the stone or cast iron fireplaces, including a 14th century plaque depicting Christ and the Virgin with the Child. These architectural and historical details make it a witness to the social and religious changes in the Charente.

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