Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Tousy Castle, located in La Chapelle-Vendômise in the Loir-et-Cher, is a monument whose origins date back to the late 15th century, although its major transformations date back to the 16th and 18th centuries. Outside, only the windows of the top floor still bear witness to the primitive structure, while inside, a spiral staircase, now drowned in the masonry, remains as a vestige of that time. The building, initially surrounded by a complete defensive system with corner towers, now preserves an imposing tower crowned with mâchicoulis, archères and niches, transformed into a dovecot in the late Middle Ages with more than 2000 brick nest boxes.

In the 18th century, the castle was acquired by the famous chemist Antoine Lavoisier, who installed a laboratory in the tower after having plastered the lower boxes on two meters high. Lavoisier carried out experiments there, particularly on the drying of tobacco, partially rearranging the premises for its scientific needs. The moats, to the west, were also reworked at this time, although their original route suggests an older defensive vocation. The ensemble was finally reshaped in the 19th century, partially altering its medieval appearance.

The current protections mainly concern the ground floor chimney and the fronts/roofs of the Pigeon Tower, classified since 1982. The site, although partially modified, offers a remarkable example of the adaptation of a castle into a seigneurial residence, then in place of scientific experimentation, reflecting architectural and functional evolutions over centuries.

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