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Origin and history

Guilleragues Castle is a medieval residence built in the 14th century on the town of Saint-Sulpice-de-Guilleragues, Gironde (Nouvelle-Aquitaine). Originally conceived as a strong house flanked by two towers and scauguettes, it was enlarged in the 16th century by the addition of two symmetrical wings and a bassyard with its commons. Its architecture thus reflects a transition between medieval defensive style and Renaissance influences, typical of castles transformed during this period.

In the 17th century, the castle belonged to Gabriel Joseph de Lavergne, Count of Guilleragues (1628–85), a prominent figure in French diplomacy and letters. Author of the Portuguese Letters, he marked the cultural history of the estate. The monument was partially protected as early as 1954 (portal and northern facade), and in its entirety in 1995, highlighting its heritage value.

Located 250 metres south of the village, near the road leading to Sainte-Gemme, the castle illustrates the evolution of seigneurial residences in Aquitaine. Its inscription in the Historical Monuments in two stages (1954 and 1995) covers both the house body, the towers, the lower courtyard and the archaeological soils, thus preserving a coherent ensemble of the fourteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

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