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Key figures

Origin and history

Thugny-Trugny Castle, located in the Ardennes, has its origins in the second half of the 16th century under the impulse of Jean-Jacques de Suzanne, Count of Cerny-en-Laonnois. It replaces ancient defensive castles perched on a hill overlooking the village. This new castle, facing the Aisne valley and partly oriented towards the church, becomes an imposing building of the Northern Champagne, as evidenced by a engraving by Claude Chastillon. The wars of Religion, then the Fronde and the Franco-Spanish war marked its early history: in 1653, Marshal Turenne even received Cardinal Mazarin there.

In 1721, the castle was acquired by Antoine Crozat, one of the richest men in France under Louis XIV, known for his activities as financier, shipowner and slave. His son, Joseph Antoine Crozat, then his brother Louis Antoine, turned the estate into a luxurious reception place in the Enlightenment. Louis Antoine enlarged the buildings, sumptuously decorated the interiors, built a collection of paintings and built the park by turning Aisne to create pools. This period marks the climax of the castle, where it "shines with a thousand fires" according to the chronicles.

The French Revolution saves relatively the castle, which remains in the Crozat family through successive matrimonial alliances (counts of Bethune, Marquis de La Tour du Pin). However, the First World War caused irreversible damage: occupied by the Germans, the castle was bombed, explosions and a fire in 1918. Reconstruction in the inter-war period only restores part of the pavilions, leaving the inner courtyard open. The dry ditches and vaulted rooms of the lower level, once surmounted by balustrade terraces, still bear witness to the original architecture.

In the 20th century, the castle changed its vocation: in the 1950s, it hosted holiday colonies for Polish children in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. Since 2007, Count Jacques de Vincens de Causans and his wife Juliette have undertaken a vast restoration campaign, financed in part by the organization of receptions and parties. The estate, which has been protected since 1946 (registered as historical monuments), also includes a 16th century seigneurial barn, now at risk, and a classified park. An association of the friends of the castle now supports its preservation.

Architecturally, the castle blends a fortified entrance châtelet (mâchicoulis, turrets, vaulted arcade) with a classic two-level facade, flanked by unequal gaize and hard stone pavilions. The tithe barn, rectangular with turrets topped by peppers, was once girded with a stone enclosure. Despite the destructions of 1918, the site retains a dreamlike charm, evoking according to some a "dream decor" or cartoon, between historical memory and contemporary renaissance.

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