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Origin and history

Duesme Ducal Castle is a medieval stronghold built on a rocky spur overlooking the Seine Valley and the village of Duesme, in northern Burgundy. Its origins date back to the 12th century, when the local lords built there a fortress regained and fortified by the Dukes of Burgundy in 1355. The site, occupied from Neolithic time, also reveals Gallo-Roman traces re-used in the current remains. The priory Saint-Étienne, prior to the castle and possibly dating from the eighth century, marks the entrance of the eperon, emphasizing the religious and defensive importance of the place.

In the 14th century, the castle became a strategic issue: fortified in 1355 to resist the Big Companies, it nevertheless fell in 1363. During the religious wars, the leaguers took hold of it before Henry IV laid siege and ordered its dismantling in 1595. The definitive destruction of the ruins took place in 1776, leaving only remains now protected and partially restored by a local association. The ditches, drawbridges and crenellated walls still illustrate its complex defensive system, adapted to natural topography.

The architecture of the castle reflects its military and seismic role. The eperon, surrounded by the Seine and the creek of the Fons, is surrounded by three ditches including a Neolithic date. Inside, the dungeon, the castral chapel dedicated to St George, and outbuildings formed the heart of the fortress, while the church and barns occupied the space between the first two drawbridges. In the 19th century, the ruins were transformed into English garden, before recent countryside restored the remaining buildings and bridges crossing the gullies. Listed at Historic Monuments in 2006, the site remains a private property.

Excavations and studies reveal a multi-sacular occupation, from Neolithic to modern times. The re-used Gallo-Roman materials and the crypt of the chapel attest to this historical stratification. Today, the Castle of Duesme embodies both a Burgundian architectural heritage and a witness to the conflicts that marked the region, from the Great Companies to the Wars of Religion.

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