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Origin and history

The castral site of Montbazon, located on a rocky promontory overlooking Indre, is a medieval defensive complex whose construction begins at the end of the 10th or early 11th century. His dungeon, attributed to Foulques Nerra, Count of Anjou, fits in the context of the rivalries between the houses of Anjou and Blois for the control of the Touraine. The fortress, strategically placed on the Towers-Poitiers route, is gradually reinforced by a shirt, enclosures and towers until the 15th century, reflecting its military and seigneurial role.

In the Middle Ages, the site evolved with the addition of a castral chapel in the 12th century and a Renaissance castle in the 15th century, welcoming figures like Charles VII, Louis XI or Catherine de Medici. The fortress declined from the seventeenth century: the Renaissance castle, abandoned, was demolished in 1746, while the dungeon, partially collapsed during the Revolution, barely escaped destruction. Its stones were reused to consolidate the Spanish road, and its crenelages, feudal symbols, were razed in 1793.

From the 19th century, the site underwent several phases of restoration and re-appropriation. In 1823, a relay of the Chappe telegraph was installed at the top of the dungeon, replaced in 1853 by the electric telegraph. In 1866, a monumental statue of the Virgin, financed by Empress Eugénie, was erected on the tower, despite the structural risks. The site was acquired in 1922 by the American William Perry Dudley, who undertook ambitious consolidation and enhancement work, including the reconstruction of a medieval tower (the "Lilian Tower") and the development of a Gothic garden.

Archaeological excavations carried out since the 2000s, notably by Marie-Denise Dalayeun, have clarified the chronology of the site, although uncertainties persist on absolute dates. The dungeon, registered as a historical monument in 1926 and classified in 2024 with the entire site, is now open to the public. It remains marked by recurrent ebbs of the promontory, threatening the houses below. Contemporary restorations, initiated by the Atterton spouses in the early 2000s, aim to preserve this heritage while making it accessible.

The castral site consists of the stone dungeon, 28 meters high, a forebody, a fortified shirt, and vestiges of 13th and 15th century enclosures. The materials used, such as travertine, tuffeau or flint, mainly come from local quarries or re-use. The castral chapel, dedicated to Saint George, and the undergrounds, partially collapsed, testify to the functional complexity of the site. The restorations of the 20th century, although controversial for their sometimes romantic approach, saved this emblematic monument of medieval military architecture in Touraine.

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