Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de La Tour-Blanche, mentioned from the 13th century under the name Ecclesia Castri de Turre then Turris alba, is a 12th century fortified building located in the Dordogne. Its square dungeon, built in white stone, symbolized the seigneurial authority of the Tower family, powerful in the 12th and 13th centuries. Adhémar de La Tour, attested in 1190, became even bishop of Périgueux. The site, initially a wooden fort replaced by a castral motte, was besieged by the English around 1350 before being taken over by Du Guesclin in 1356.

During the Hundred Years' War, English and French troops held the castles of Jovelle and La Tour-Blanche in turn. In the 15th century, the dungeon was partially rebuilt, as evidenced by the crows of the mâchicoulis dated that time. The castle, transformed into a barony after its acquisition by the Bourdeille family around 1370, suffered major damage during the Wars of Religion (1569) and during the Fronde (1652). Confiscated as a national property in 1794, it was sold to local residents.

Ranked a Historic Monument in 1906 as it was about to be demolished, the dungeon benefited from urgent restorations between 1907 and 1909. In 1970, a fire ravaged the interior of the tower. Today, there are only massive ruins left: the square tower, a courtine, and a secondary tower with scald. The site, surrounded by a ditch fed by the Buffebale, illustrates medieval military architecture, mixing defensive elements (mâchicoulis, foothills) and traces of Renaissance redevelopments.

The place's toponymy, La Tour-Blanche, comes directly from the clear stone dungeon, an explicit reference in medieval texts. The castle, enclaved in Périgord but attached to Anguumois from the 14th century to the Revolution, embodies the territorial tensions of the period. Its history also reflects local upheavals, such as the destruction of the first neighbouring church during the wars of Religion (1560) or its role in seigneurial life, with figures such as Pierre de Bourdeilles, Abbé de Brantôme, who lived there at the beginning of the seventeenth century.

Archaeological excavations in the surrounding area, particularly in the Jovelle cave, revealed paleolithic engravings and carved objects, attesting to a human occupation long before the Middle Ages. These discoveries, combined with the remains of the two castles (La Tour-Blanche and Jovelle), offer a complete historical panorama, from the Paleolithic superior to modern conflicts. The site, now protected, remains a strong identity marker for the municipality, integrated since 2017 in La Tour-Blanche-Cercles.

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