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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de Vault-de-Lugny, located in the department of Yonne in Burgundy-Franche-Comté, finds its origins in the fourteenth century. At the initial location named Olaniacum or Ologny, a first castle was built in 1120 for a cadet from the House of Arcy, before passing by marriage to the House of Toucy. The dungeon and the drawbridge, erected in 1320 under Guy II of Toucy, testify to its defensive role during the Hundred Years' War, during which time the castle was ruined by the English and the Scotchers. The premises were occupied twice between 1372 and 1379, reflecting regional tensions.

In the 15th century, Guy de Jaucourt acquired the seigneury in 1450 and undertook the reconstruction of the castle, including the large house and surrounding buildings. His act of freeing the inhabitants in 1454, ratified by Philippe le Bon, Duke of Burgundy, underlines his political influence. The castle also became a place linked to the Reformation: the edict of Nantes granted it a Protestant preaching right in 1595, and a synod held there in 1667. Religious conflicts mark its history, as evidenced by the expanded moat during the Wars of Religion.

The present dungeon, a 26-metre square tower dating from the 15th century, served both as a prison and a defence post. Ranked a historic monument in 1971, it illustrates medieval military architecture with its murderers and pyramidal roof. In the 18th century, the castle changed hands several times, passing from the Jaucourt to the Montmien and Crillon families, before being sold in 1802 to Jean-François-Marie Jordan. After the Revolution, he remained in the descendants of the Jordan and Péting de Vaulgrenant until the 20th century, before serving as a set for the show Cluedo in 1994.

Successive lords, such as the d'Arcy, the Toucy, or the Jaucourt, marked its evolution, between reconstruction, political alliances and adaptations to religious contexts. The remains of the 16th century drawbridge and the large courtyard surrounded by ditches recall its strategic past. Today, the private property, the castle retains defensive and residential elements emblematic of its turbulent history.

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