Underground occupation fin XIIe-début XIVe siècle (≈ 1425)
Main refuge before the current castle
XIVe siècle
Initial construction
Initial construction XIVe siècle (≈ 1450)
First phase of the present castle
guerre de Cent Ans (XIVe-XVe siècle)
Adding towers and poterne
Adding towers and poterne guerre de Cent Ans (XIVe-XVe siècle) (≈ 1550)
Defensive reinforcement of the site
début XVIe siècle
Residential changes
Residential changes début XVIe siècle (≈ 1604)
Fireplace and added berries
21 mai 2001
Historical Monument
Historical Monument 21 mai 2001 (≈ 2001)
Legal protection of the site
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The castle comprising all buildings, undergrounds and archaeological remains, as well as the ground of the plots (Box B 151, 152, 154): inscription by order of 21 May 2001
Key figures
Information non disponible - No names cited in the sources
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Origin and history
The Château de Montfaucon, located in Marigny-Brizay, finds its origins in the 14th century, with a first construction whose remains remain. During the Hundred Years' War, major defensive arrangements were added: four full towers, a poterne and a median advance, reflecting local tensions. These changes also led to internal transformations, such as the drilling of new bays and the installation of two chimneys, adapting the structure to the needs of the time. The site was girded with a enclosure with turrets, housing outbuildings (grange, oven, housing) and a network of undergrounds used as a refuge, mainly between the late 12th and early 14th century.
At the beginning of the 16th century, subsequent additions – including a chimney and holes on the ground floor – partially altered its medieval appearance. The fort house, classified as a Historic Monument in 2001, thus retains architectural traces of its successive phases: defensive (tours, poterne), residential (pathways, bays) and agricultural (dependencies). Its soil and archaeological remains are protected, highlighting its heritage importance.
The building illustrates the evolution of fort houses in times of conflict, combining military functions (underground-refugees, pregnant) and daily life (housing, oven). Its history materializes the strategies of adapting local lords to insecurity, while revealing, through its subsequent changes, a transition to a more residential vocation in the Renaissance.
