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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Noüe, located in the municipality of Villers-Cotettes in Aisne, has its origins at the end of the 10th or early 11th century, with a first building built at the place called the Noüe. This original castle was replaced in the 13th century, and then deeply transformed in the 15th and 16th centuries, a period from which today remains the rectangular enclosure, the square dungeon with turrets, and a monumental dovecote of 9.20 meters in diameter, witness to the status of high justice of its lords. The chapel of Saint James, erected in 1156 thanks to an episcopal authorization, as well as the redevelopments of the 19th century (neoclassical facade, pediment adorned with Ceres) illustrate the successive strata of its architectural history.

The seigneury of Noüe belonged for five centuries to the eponymous family, benefactor of several local religious institutions such as the Chartreuse of Bourgfontaine. In 1539, Peter II of Noüe gave the estate to King Francis I, who offered it to his favorite Anne of Pisseleu, Duchess of Etampes. After this royal period, the castle changed hands several times: acquired in 1642 by the nuns of Soissons, then by the knight Denis Leroy in 1672, he suffered symbolic destruction during the Revolution (arase of the towers in 1793 by Louis de Foucault). In the 19th century it became the residence of the Picot family, which adjusted elements of the First Empire style.

The twentieth century marked a new vocation for the castle: in 1948, it housed Mohamed Ben Abdallah (the so-called Bou-Maza), Arab chief under house arrest after the conquest of Algeria. Repurchased in 1957 by Pauline André-Lécroart, the estate was transformed into experimental nurseries by his son Charles, awarded in 1989 for his innovations in fruit trees. Partially classified as early as 1927, the ensemble (castle, dovecote, chapel and enclosure) enjoyed extensive protection in 2004, highlighting its heritage importance in the Hauts-de-France.

The architecture of the castle combines medieval defensive elements ( François I style entrance castle, round path) and more recent additions, such as the neoclassical facade decorated with sculptures attributed to Jules Manet. The dovecote, with its 3,755 bolts accessible by a rotating ladder, remains one of the most imposing of Valois, while the chapel retains a door decorated with macabre symbols (skein and tibias). These details reflect both the ancient seigneurial power and the adaptations associated with modern agricultural practices.

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