Château de Martigny-le-Comte en Saône-et-Loire

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Origin and history

Martigny-le-Comte Castle is a former castle, deeply transformed in the 19th century, which was the centre of Martigny's seigneury. Located in the department of Saône-et-Loire, on a hill overlooking the region, it has been partially listed as a historical monument since 1995. Its architecture combines medieval elements, such as round towers and a tower, with 19th-century neo-Gothic restorations, notably led by Count Antoine de Beaumont in 1878.

At the end of the eleventh century, the seigneury belonged to Hugues of Damascus, son of Geoffroy of Semur-en-Brionnais. In 1237, she joined the ducal estate with Charolais County, then transferred to Marie des Barres. In the 14th century, the seigneury passed into the hands of the Chazeron, before being confiscated in 1423 by Duke Philip III of Burgundy for the benefit of his Chancellor, Nicolas Rolin, because of the loyalty of the Chazeron to the dolphin Louis XI. The Rolin finally restored the estate to the Chazeron heirs in 1477, after the fall of Charles the Temerary.

In the 16th century, the seigneury was transferred by marriage to the family of Choiseul, then returned to the La Guiche de Sivignon before passing to the Durey de Sauroy. In 1792 the owner, Duke Louis Hercule Timoleon of Cossé-Brissac, was murdered during the Revolution. The castle was acquired in 1848 by Count Antoine de Beaumont, who began his neo-Gothic restoration in 1878. His descendants still own them today.

The castle consists of a house body in the shape of L, flanked by three towers: two rounds to the south and one square to the northeast, serving as a peg tower. An octagonal tower and a horseshoe staircase complete the whole, while structured gardens surround the house. The south-east tower, partially abrased, preserves traces of its medieval state, escaping the transformations of the 19th century.

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