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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Montessus dungeon, located in Changy in Saône-et-Loire, is an emblematic monument of the medieval military architecture of Charolais. Built mainly in the 14th and 15th centuries, it consists of a quadrangular tower with a roof in the pavilion and flanked by four circular scalds. A house body is attached to the main tower, while a circular tower to the south houses a chapel and a dovecote. The ensemble, surrounded by a stationer mentioned from the 16th century, bears witness to architectural transformations until the 17th century.

The castle was successively owned by local noble families. Originally owned by the Macon family of Rabutin, it passed to the Trezettes in the 14th century, then to the Sarrazin around 1440. In 1487, by the marriage of Léonarde Sarrazin with Hugues Bernard, the estate belonged to the Bernard de Montcenis family, newly anoblated. The latter, which became Bernard de Montessus, retained the castle until 1957, when it was handed over by inheritance to the family of the Cropte de Chanterac. The Bernard de Montessus family also owns the nearby castles of Rully and Ballore.

Ranked a historic monument since September 4, 2006, the site includes buildings, floors, basements and the park, according to old cadastral plans. Although not open to the public, an association, Friends of the Montessus site, works for its preservation, its cultural outreach and the promotion of traditional local breeding. The dungeon, perched on a hill overlooking the Arconce Valley, remains a symbol of Burgundian and Charoese castral heritage.

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