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Origin and history

The castle of the Dukes of Joyeuse, located in Couiza in the Aude, was built between 1540 and 1550 on the initiative of Jean de Joyeuse, pair of France and governor of Narbonne, after his marriage in 1518 with Françoise de Voisins, the last heir of the local lords. This Renaissance castle, marked by both military and refined architecture, replaces an earlier medieval building. His son, Guillaume de Joyeuse, bishop of Alet and then Marshal of France, continued the work, but in 1577 he was looted by Protestants.

In 1582, Guillaume de Joyeuse set up a luxurious court there, but after his death in 1592, the castle, unfinished, was abandoned by his heirs. In 1649 he was sold to Claude de Rebé, nephew of the Archbishop of Narbonne, and later became a national during the Revolution. Turned into a military hospital, gendarmerie and wool shop, it fell into ruins until its restoration some 50 years ago. Ranked a historic monument in 1913, it now houses a hotel-restaurant.

The castle is organized around a rectangular courtyard flanked by four circular towers, with thick walls pierced by murderers. The exterior, austere and medieval, contrasts with the inner courtyard, decorated with Renaissance houses in fine sandstone. The windows, grilled and decorated with Latin crosses, as well as the conical roofs in pink tiles, reflect Audoise architecture. Despite its unfinished state, it illustrates the transition between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.

The chapel and entrance, of Francis I style, coexist with elements of Henry II style. The cellars, rendered uninhabitable by the floods of Aude, and the lack of interior decoration testify to its early abandonment. The entrance porch, adorned with doric columns and modillons, was initially to support a loggia. After centuries of neglect, its recent restoration has preserved this emblematic heritage of Languedoc.

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