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Origin and history

Aulnay Castle, located in Aulnay-de-Saintonge (Charente-Maritime), occupied a strategic site on the Roman route between Saintes and Poitiers, known as Aunedonacum. From the 9th century, the seigneury belonged to the Maingot family, which kept it until the 13th century. It then passed into the hands of the Mortagne, the Clermont, and then the Montberon, before being sold. This monument, now extinct, was a witness to local feudal dynamics, with a 12th century circular dungeon as a major architectural element.

Louise de Savoie acquired the seigneury in 1506 and offered it to Charles d'Orléans, with clause of return to the royal estate at his death. The castle then became property of Marie Stuart as a dowry complement, before returning to the Crown after its execution. Over the centuries, he changed hands several times, until his final sale on the 8 thormidor an XIII (1795). The last ruins were razed in 1840, and their stones were reused in the village buildings, where still sculpted elements remain.

The architecture of the castle included a 15 metre high dungeon, built on a circular terre, accessible by a spiral staircase integrated in the thickness of the walls. The floors, illuminated by murderers, reflected a defensive conception typical of the Middle Ages. In the vicinity, an imposing round leak (pigeon) was indicative of the economic importance of the seigneury, although its roof has now disappeared.

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