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Origin and history

The Château de Saint-Georges-Motel is a 17th century building built on the commune of Saint-Georges-Motel in the department of Eure in Normandy. Assigned to René de Pilliers and Charlotte de Trousseauville, he replaced an earlier building where Henry IV had stayed before the Battle of Ivry (1590). Its name "motel" would evoke a small motte, vestige of this former fortification. The building, made of bricks and stones, is lined with moat, typical of the seigneurial houses of the time.

In the 19th century, the castle underwent a major restoration between the two world wars, led by Colonel Jacques Balsan and his wife, born Vanderbilt. This aristocratic couple welcomed personalities like Winston Churchill and his family for several summers. The park, originally designed by André Le Nôtre, is redesigned by Louis-Sulpice Varé, a landscape architect renowned for his work in the Bois de Boulogne. The facades, roofs, moat and ordered park have been listed as historical monuments since 1977.

The estate, now privately owned, illustrates the architectural and landscape evolution of Norman castles, mixing the legacy of the Great Century and 19th century transformations. Its history also reflects the links between the French aristocracy and international figures, such as the Vanderbilt family or Churchill, marking its role in the social and political networks of the time.

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