Initial construction avant 1678 (≈ 1678)
Bastide built for Françoise de Cambis
1753
Purchase by d'Ailhaud
Purchase by d'Ailhaud 1753 (≈ 1753)
Jean-Gaspard d'Ailhaud becomes owner
2013
MH classification
MH classification 2013 (≈ 2013)
Registration for historical monuments
2020
Change of owners
Change of owners 2020 (≈ 2020)
Start of restoration work
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The whole of the estate enclosed by the castle located takes place the Grand Pré, namely: the castle, the chapel, the outbuildings, the wing of the old factory, in full, including the terrace of the castle and the fence wall of the old factory (Box B 330); the clock pavilion (Box B 329); the dovecote in full (Box B 350); the park (Box B 376, 328); old basins, terraces and retaining walls (Box B 320, 321); the aisle planted to the west with its gate, exhedral and parts of the corresponding park (Box B 318); the aisle planted to the south with its gate, its retaining walls and parts of the corresponding park (cad. B 322): registration by order of 16 July 2013
Key figures
Françoise de Cambis - Initial sponsor
Widow of Brancas, first owner
Jean-Gaspard d'Ailhaud - Doctor and King's Counselor
Buyer in 1753, moderniser of the estate
Origin and history
The Grand-Pré castle is a vast quadrangular bastide built at the end of the seventeenth century for Françoise de Cambis, widow of Honoré de Brancas Forcalquier. Its Louis XV style architecture reflects the influences of the time, with a central house body and outbuildings organized around a courtyard. The estate includes a chapel, agricultural buildings, and a dovecote, typical of Provencal seigneurial residences.
Acquired in 1753 by the doctor Jean-Gaspard d'Ailhaud, famous for his purgative powder, the castle became a symbol of his social success. Appointed counselor and secretary to the king, d'Ailhaud added a factory operated by his descendants. The whole, with its terraced park and basins, illustrates the alliance between agricultural exploitation and aristocratic prestige.
Ranked a historic monument in 2013, the estate changed owners in 2020. The new buyers launched restoration work and opened the site to visits, thus revealing a preserved architectural and landscape heritage. The monumental entrances, marked by 17th and 18th century pillars, underline its local historical importance.
The castle embodies the evolution of the Provencal bastides, from seigneurial residence to family industrial estate. Its Aix-based mansion (hotel d'Ailhaud) and its factory testify to the economic diversification of its owners, between medicine, agriculture and manufacturing production.
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