Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Façades and roofs of the castle and communes; moat; gardens (cad. C 683, 684): by order of 24 September 1968; interior, including the following: staircase and a towel folded pallet door; on the ground floor of the main house body: old guard room with fireplace, living room with fireplace, woodwork and ceiling, old chapel with woodwork, dining room; on the ground floor of the North-East Tower: monumental fireplace room with its woodwork (Box C 684): inscription by order of 4 March 1991
Key figures
Comptour d'Apchon - Founding family
Originally from Aveyron, builders in 1070.
Martinus - Roman Warrior
Name of *Martinanches* (grant).
Origin and history
The Château des Martinanches, located in Saint-Dier-d'Auvergne in Puy-de-Dôme, was built in 1070 by the Comptour d'Apchon family, native of Aveyron. It rises on an ancient Roman way from Le Puy-en-Velay to Clermont-Ferrand, where a grant station was installed under Roman occupation. The name Martinanches would come from the Roman warrior Martinus, responsible for receiving this grant. Originally, the castle served as a weapons depot for the fiefs neighbouring Boissonnelle, Montboissier and Mauzun.
The original building, typical of the 11th century castles, was modified in the 15th and 16th centuries, then embellished in the 18th century to add comfort. The body of rectangular houses, flanked by corner towers, is completed by a later north wing. Two bridges span the wide moat surrounding the building. The eastern facade, framed by circular towers, features a polygonal turret with a screw staircase, while the southern and northern facades retain traces of their primitive state behind the reshuffles.
Partially classified as historical monuments in 1968 (façades, roofs, moats and gardens) and registered in 1991 for its interiors ( vaulted rooms, monumental fireplaces, woodwork and 19th century chapel), the castle illustrates the architectural evolution of medieval houses towards more comfortable residences. The commons, arranged in arc of circle, delimit the land-full to the south. Today, the site is visited in summer and offers guest rooms.
According to the sources, the castle was built on a strategic Roman route, highlighting its historical role in controlling the territory. The Comptour d'Apchon, the first owners, marked its Aveyronese origin. The modifications of the 18th and 19th centuries (like the chapel) reflect the successive adaptations to the needs of the occupants, mixing medieval heritage and modern amenities.
The protected elements include remarkable interior decorations, such as towel folds, woodwork and solitary ceilings, which witness the castle's fascist periods. The guard room, living room and chapel preserve fireplaces and amenities characteristic of the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. These successive protections (1968 and 1991) guarantee the preservation of this emblematic heritage of the Auvergne.
