Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Montferrand-le-Château is an ancient castle of the 11th and 12th centuries, now in ruins, located on a cliff overlooking the Doubs at 354 meters altitude. Its remains, protected since 1926 and classified on one hectare in 1934, illustrate a rectangular enclosure of 60 meters long, supplemented by a square dungeon and a second enclosure encompassing a space of 165 meters. The site, strategically positioned, was a key point of the fortifications linked to the Sires de Montferrand, a noble family from France from the 13th to the 15th century.

The history of the castle is marked by regional conflicts involving the lords of Montferrand. From 1230 on, William and John II of Montferrand were mentioned for the first time. In 1259, Pierre de Montferrand, at war against the archbishop of Besançon, underwent excommunication before a reconciliation under the aegis of Saint Louis. In 1268 he destroyed the castle of Thoraise, owned by his uncle Hugues, an ally of the Count of Burgundy. The castle also served as a prison, as in 1353 during the assassination of Richard de Montferrand, where his niece Osanne and Humbert d'Ornans were imprisoned.

In the 13th and 14th centuries, the castle houses a dozen families of subjects, as well as a chestnut, a prosecutor and gunmen. In times of war, the peasants took refuge there to defend themselves. The lords of Montferrand, although owners, reside mainly in Besançon. The site includes a lower yard extended by the village, protected by a drawbridge. In 1300, Eudes de Montferrand and other lords destroyed the enemy castles of Ornans, Clerval and Pontarlier during a conflict with Philip the Bel.

The seigneury was confiscated by Jean le Bon in 1353, then passed through successive alliances to the families of Salins, Vergy, Achey and Grammont. In the 16th century, the castle remained a strategic place: in 1594, a magazine of weapons was organized in front of the invasion of Henry IV. Acquired in 1606 by Antoine de Pillot, it fell into ruins after the war of Ten Years (1632-1642), a victim of a fire and lack of maintenance. In 1654, a visit revealed burned buildings, except the chapel. The stones of the fortifications are then used to build the village's first houses.

Architecturally, the castle consists of a square dungeon overlooking the cliff, a main enclosure and a ditch cut from the rock. The lower courtyard, extended by the village, housed subjects and infrastructure such as a seigneurial barn and an oven. The current remains, located in the forest, include masures near the dungeon. The site, although partially destroyed, offers a rare testimony of defensive systems and seigneurial life in Franche-Comté in the Middle Ages.

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