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Origin and history

The Château de Vendrennes, located in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region, is an emblematic monument dating back to the twelfth century. Its primitive Niortian-type dungeon is distinguished by a square shape flanked by round towers and semicircular foothills. The discovery in 1989 of remains of a Romanesque church in its enclosure confirmed its membership in this rare category of medieval military architecture. Today the site retains a characteristic fortified aspect, despite the destructions suffered over the centuries.

Originally the seat of a châtellenie dependent on the Viscount of Thouars, the castle was mentioned in 1230 as property of the marquise of Mauléon, widow of Guillaume de Lusignan, then called a lady of Mouchamps and Vendrennes. In the 14th and 15th centuries, he passed into the hands of influential families such as the Bellevilles and the Clissons, before being confiscated by the king of France for collaboration with the English during the Hundred Years War. Olivier III de Clisson and his wife were thus dispossessed. From the 16th century until the Revolution, the seigneury returned to the lords of Mouchamps, who nevertheless resided in the castle of Parc-Soubise.

The revolutionary period marks a tragic turning point for the castle. Confiscated as a national good, its sale was delayed by the Vendée War (1793–94), during which Vendrennes was in the heart of the insurgent zones. On 21 February 1794, a republican column commanded by General Duquesnoy committed a massacre of sixty women, children and old men. The castle was finally burned in 1794, before being inscribed in the historical monuments in 1991 for its remarkable remains, including the castle itself and its ditches.

Architecturally, the castle illustrates medieval defensive evolutions, with Romanesque elements (donjon, church) and subsequent developments reflecting its tormented history. Its designation as historic monuments underlines its heritage importance, both for its state of conservation and for its role in the conflicts that marked the Vendée. The gaps and fortified structures still visible today offer a tangible testimony to its strategic and seigneurial past.

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