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Origin and history

The castle of Dompierre-sur-Authie, located in the valley of the Authie to the north-west of the Somme, was originally ceded in 1415 by Philippe d'Auxy, Senechal of Ponthieu, to his sister Catherine d'Auxy, wife of David de Rambures. Their son André inherited it, but it was Jacques de Rambures who built around 1455 the massive defence tower still visible today. Louis XI, in 1463, described him as "beautiful and very beautiful", although he suffered damage during the conflicts with Charles the Teméraire, Duke of Burgundy. The castle, positioned at the northern border of the kingdom, played a strategic role of protection.

In 1554 the castle was set on fire by imperial troops. At that time, the tower, without a roof, was surrounded by ditches fed by the Authie and accompanied by a rectangular building flanked by a tower. The current remains show a sandstone base, walls of 2.20 m thick, and cannon guns. The artillery rooms, which were not vaulted, were pierced with murderers for a razing shot, while a round road equipped with shoulder straps completed the defensive device.

In the 17th century, in 1627, Charles de Rambures partially transformed the castle: he had the western part destroyed while preserving the medieval tower, to which he joined a new rectangular building made of brick and stone. The tower, a symbol of this turbulent history, was classified by order of 18 May 1926. Today it bears witness to the military architecture of the 15th and 17th centuries, between medieval heritage and Renaissance adaptations.

The castle also illustrates the history of the Rambures family, deeply rooted in the region. Its location in the valley of Authia, an area of tension between the kingdoms of France and neighbouring duches, made it a nerve point during the wars of the late Middle Ages. The ditches, now closed, recall its role as a fortress inserted into a wider defensive network, where water and stone combined to resist besiegants.

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