Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Château du Sou is a fortified house built around 1369 in Lacenas, in the Rhône department. Built in golden stones of Beaujolais, it features a square enclosure flanked by round towers, a residential dungeon with scauguettes, and a Gothic chapel decorated with sculptures. The fortified gate, classified as a historic monument in 1933, has 13 coats of arms hammered at the Revolution, including those of the families Thélis and Gaspard, successive owners. The estate includes a park with medieval garden and a washhouse fed by a fountain.

The first written mention of the castle dates from 1368, when Jean de Thélis, Damoiseau, admitted it. The seigneury then passed to Lespinasse (XV century), then to Claude Gaspard in the 16th century. Jean de Thélis-L'Espinasse, governor of Beaujolais in 1369, was probably the original sponsor. The Gaspards, whose Claude (counsellor of the King and receiver of finances in Lyon in 1577), marked the history of the place: Marc de Gaspard had the door of the coats of arms built in the 17th century. The castle, sold as a national property during the Revolution after the emigration of Count Aimé Antoine du Sou, is now shared between several owners.

Architecturally, the castle combines medieval defensive elements (doves, drawbridge, breeches) and rear fittings. The three-storey square dungeon, preceded by a forebody, dominates an almost perfect enclosure. The Gothic chapel preserves carved angel heads, while the fortified gate, symbol of seigneurial prestige, illustrates family alliances with its coats of arms. Renovated in the 19th century, the castle now hosts receptions, while preserving its historical heritage.

The coats of arms of the Thélis families (of three-star gules) and Gaspard (of three-star chevron d'or) recall their influence. The site, located in the valley of Morgon, west of Villefranche-sur-Saône, bears witness to the feudal history of Beaujolais, between seigneurial power, administrative functions (banking, royal finances) and transformations related to political and architectural revolutions.

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