Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Tower of Caesar is a quadrangular dungeon built between 1015 and 1030, part of the former castle of Beaugency. This castle, located on a limestone spur overlooking the Loire, preserved Romanesque elements such as the seigneurial house, transformed in the 14th and 15th centuries. Its strategic location controlled access to the bridge over the Loire, mentioned as early as 1145.

The castle also housed an abbey of regular canons of Saint-Augustin, whose abbey of the 1140s remained. The convent buildings, rebuilt at the end of the seventeenth century, now house a school and a hotel-restaurant. The castral enclosure, partially preserved, could date from the beginning of the thirteenth century, while the chapel Saint-Georges, replaced in the fourteenth century, reflects the influence of the royal cult of Saint George under Philip VI.

The site was modified after the Revolution, especially when a begging depot was created in 1839. Remnants such as a Romanesque geminate bay or goutreal walls testify to its architectural evolution. The presence of coins struck at Beaugency from the 10th century (under Charles the Simple) suggests an ancient occupation, linked to a local economic pole.

The tower, classified as a Historical Monument since 1840, illustrates the strategic importance of Beaugency, a crossroads between the Loire and the land roads. Its dungeon, among the oldest in the region, marks the transition from Carolingian architecture to Romanesque art. The successive transformations (14th, 16th, 19th centuries) reflect its adaptation to military, religious and civil needs.

The castle controlled access to the bridge over the Loire, a key element for trade and defence. The seigneurial houses, such as that of Dunois (15th century) or Jean d'Orléans-Longueville (early 16th century), show the influence of the great characters linked to the crown. The whole, now partially open to the public, houses a museum and municipal services.

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