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Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de Maisontiers is a building located in the Deux-Sèvres department in New Aquitaine. It is located in the east of the village, between the departmental road 137 and the river Taconière. Its origins date back at least to the 13th century, with a fief belonging to the Hospital Knights, although the architectural traces of the present date mainly from the late 15th century.

At the end of the 15th century, Claude de Montjehan bought the existing buildings and transformed them to build the present castle. In 1544 she sold him to Guyonne Bernard, wife of René de Tusseau, squire seigneur de la Millanchère. The castle was marked by a succession of owners, often linked by family alliances, including the Tusseau, who owned it from 1544 to 1792.

The castle was partially listed as a historical monument in 1957 for its facades, roofs and moats, and then fully protected with its estate in 2005. In 2013, the castle, its moats and some plots are classified as historical monuments. Its architecture is distinguished by a west wing dating back to the 15th century and a 19th century stable, as well as by imposing moats, notably to the north-east, measuring 110 meters long by 40 meters wide.

The successive owners included noble families such as the Gaullier de Senermont, the Rambaud and the Wissocq, before being acquired in 1996 by the Macé de Lépinay family. Despite some periods of transition, as during the French Revolution where it became a national good, the castle remained in hands related to the Tusseau since the 16th century.

The Château de Maisontiers illustrates the architectural and social evolution of seigneurial buildings in New Aquitaine, mixing medieval heritage and subsequent transformations. Its classification as a historical monument highlights its heritage importance and its role in local history.

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