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Origin and history

The Château de Gannes is a former medieval castle located on the territory of the commune of L'Hôme-Chamondot, in the department of Orne, Normandy. Its ruins, partially preserved, bear witness to a defensive architecture typical of the Middle Ages, with a quadrangular dungeon of 15 × 20 meters, built on a feudal motte. The walls, blocked by flint and chained with sandstone at the corners, remain mainly on the east side, where they reach another ten meters high. Inside, the 1956 excavations revealed the beginning of a screw staircase, suggesting an original access through the first floor, characteristic of medieval dungeons designed for defence.

The castle of Gannes was destroyed in 1428 by the English during the Hundred Years War, a conflict marking the history of Normandy and medieval France. This destruction is part of a period of violence and repeated confrontations between the kingdoms of France and England, where the strong castles played a major strategic role. The current, though fragmentary, remains offer an overview of the military construction techniques of the time, with thick walls of more than 2 meters, designed to resist the assaults.

The ruins of Gannes Castle have been protected as historical monuments since October 11, 1933, recognizing their heritage and historical value. Located close to the farm of the Motte, about 1 km northeast of the village of the Hame-Chamondot, they recall the importance of local fortifications in the Norman landscape of the 15th century. Their present state, though partial, allows us to study the evolution of the castral structures and their adaptation to the conflicts of the medieval period.

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