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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Mursay Castle, located on the left bank of the Niorta Sèvre in Echiré (Deux-Sèvres), is a gentilhommière built in the late 16th century. It is distinguished by its raised rectangular platform, flanked by turrets at the corners, and a house body divided by a central stair tower. The building, partly in stone and partly in stone, housed reception rooms decorated with panelling and chimneys on the ground floor, while the rooms occupied the first floor. Henri IV reportedly stayed there, and the castle was the birthplace of Marthe-Marguerite de Caylus in 1671.

The castle is best known for being the residence of Agrippa d'Aubigné, Protestant poet and grandfather of Françoise d'Aubigné, future Marquise de Maintenon. In 1615, the estate passed to Louise Arthemise d'Aubigné, known as Madame de Villette, who raised his niece Françoise there. The property remained in the family until 1759, before being sold to Antoine Martin, master echevin of Niort. Occupied until the beginning of the 20th century, the castle deteriorated in the 1930s, leading to its classification as the additional inventory of historical monuments in 1952.

Saved from the ruin by local associations, including Les amis du Château de Mursay (created in 1999), the site was purchased in 2002 by the community of Niortais agglomeration. Consolidation work is then undertaken to preserve this heritage linked to Protestant history and the court of Louis XIV, thanks to his association with Madame de Maintenon.

The protected elements include the ruins of the castle, classified by decree of 6 February 1952. The site preserves traces of its original carpentry and paintings, although its current state no longer allows to fully appreciate its past fascist. Today, Mursay Castle symbolizes both the architectural heritage of the Renaissance in Poitou and the links between the Protestant nobility and the French monarchy.

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