Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The enclosure of Châteauneuf, located in Tours in the present department of Indre-et-Loire, was erected at the beginning of the 10th century to protect the Basilica of Saint Martin and affirm the political autonomy of the city of Martin in front of the old Gallo-Roman city. Surrounded by a ditch and four doors, it also symbolized the rivalry between the religious authorities of Saint Martin and the bishop of Tours. Its layout, about 210 to 250 metres long per side, included a space of 4 hectares divided between a canonial district to the south and a secular district to the north.

The construction of the enclosure, probably authorized by Charles III the Simple between 903 and 918, responded both to Norman raids and to a political will to mark the independence of Châteauneuf. The materials used (small flint machine linked to the pink mortar) and its architecture (cylindrical towers spaced 40 meters) were inspired by the Gallo-Roman enclosure of Towers. As early as the 12th century, houses were attached to the wall, and parts were dismantled to reuse the stones in the new enclosure of the 14th century.

Over the centuries, the enclosure lost its defensive utility. The gates were destroyed between the 17th and 19th centuries, and the last major remains disappeared during the 1940 bombings. Today, two redesigned towers (Baleschoux Street and Nericault-Destouches Street) and underground remains remain. The enclosure, classified as a historical monument between 1940 and 1950, bears witness to the medieval bipolarization of Tours between the Episcopal "City" and the Martinian village.

The speaker also played an economic role: it housed a market, exchangers, and monetary strike workshops, where the denier de Saint-Martin became the book tournaments. Its decline accelerated after the construction of the " nailing" of John the Good in the 14th century, which made its perimeter obsolete. Archaeological excavations (notably after 1940) have made it possible to clarify its path and history, although uncertainty persists over the existence of a first wooden palisade.

Among the key characters, Robert (count of Tours and lay abbot of Saint Martin) and Charles III the Simple authorized his construction. In the 15th century, architect Thierry Babillone (or Babylon) repaired several towers. The enclosure thus illustrates the political, religious and urban tensions that structured Tours in the Middle Ages, between episcopal power, canonial chapter and merchant bourgeoisie.

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