Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de la Tour-Maubourg, located in Saint-Maurice-de-Lignon, finds its origins in the 12th century with the Malet family, who erected the first fortified castle. Enlarged in the 15th and 16th centuries by the Faÿ de La Tour-Maubourg, it became the heart of a diocesan Barony of the Velay, also encompassing Sainte-Sigolene. The old castle, consisting of three towers (including one possibly dating back to the 11th century) and buildings, was destroyed during the Revolution, with the exception of a tower still visible today.

At the beginning of the 19th century, Charles-César de Faÿ de La Tour-Maubourg rebuilt the castle on the site of the ancient communes, adopting a Management style: four symmetrical wings surround a rectangular courtyard. The estate then includes a cooler (rare in the area), an 18th-century orangery, and an English-style park designed by an English landscaper, sheltering pluricentennial trees like a beech and two oaks. The chapel, integrated with the east wing, and the library preserve decorations prior to the 20th century, when transformations were carried out by the Houillères de la Loire.

The castle is linked to the legend of Marguerite Malet de la Tour, whose piety would have given rise to a miracle in the sixteenth century: while she hid provisions for the poor under her coat, her husband, Christophe de Faÿ, discovered flowers there in the middle of winter. A chapel dedicated to Saint Marguerite, destroyed during the Revolution and rebuilt in the 19th century, was built at the place of this miracle, becoming a place of pilgrimage. The site, including the medieval tower, the cooler, orangery and the funeral chapel, was listed as historical monuments in 2007.

In 1875, Caesar de Latour-Maubourg had a neo-Roman mausoleum erected in the cemetery of Saint-Maurice-de-Lignon for his son, who had died in the war. In the 20th century, the castle served as a center of holiday settlements, partially altering its interiors, although some rooms (such as the rooms of the Marquis or the library) retained their original decor. Today, the estate, owned by the commune, bears witness to nearly nine centuries of history, from medieval lords to modern transformations.

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