Château de La Brède, La Brède, France

The Château de La Brède is a feudal castle in the commune of La Brède. The castle was built in the Gothic style starting in 1306, on the site of an earlier castle. It is surrounded by water-filled moats and an English garden, in the centre of a Bordelais vineyard. Despite modifications over the centuries, it has kept its character as a fortress.

The philosopher Montesquieu was born, lived and wrote the majority of his works here. Visitors may see his library (though the books have been transferred to the library in Bordeaux) and his bedroom, both preserved as they were in the 18th century.

At her death in 2004, the Countess of Chabannes, a descendant of Montesquieu and last owner of the château, bequeathed her belongings, including the castle, to the Foundation named after her.

The castle is open to visitors from Easter November.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Jelena Markovic (2 years ago)
Fantastic. Tour guide is absolutely amazing. Beautiful 2 hours tour, worth every cent and minute.

R. H. (2 years ago)
If you are looking at this, you know that this is the chateau where Montesquieu wrote his great works. What’s important to know is that the place is beautiful and the tours, especially the one of the park, are wonderful. It becomes much easier to read the Great thinker knowing how and where he worked. The only downside is that I could not find public transportation to the chateau and had to take a taxi. I was able to meet a Bordeaux resident during the tour who took me back to the nearest tram stop.

Celia Mazy (2 years ago)
Cute. The tour was about an hour long but it feels shorter. It was 11€ for adults and with a student ID it’s 9€. There are your times every hour.

Claire Moran (3 years ago)
A beautiful castle. Well worth a visit if you’re in the area. The guided tour is about an hour long and cost about €9 per person. It’s possible to just walk around the grounds if you don’t want to do a tour

Alejandro Rentería Almaráz (3 years ago)
Lovely place to visit, we found it thanks to our lovely hosts. You can visit the surroundings for a reduced price, or check the times of the guided tour and visit the inside of the castle. Sounds like a great plan, but we were running out of time and only walk through the surroundings. If you're in the Léognan area and want to discover new places, this is a must! Everything is beautiful if you drive around the area.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright discopalace

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Sigmaringen Castle

Sigmaringen Castle was first mentioned in the year 1077 in the chronicles of Petershausen monastery. The oldest parts of the castle are concealed beneath the alterations made during the 17th and the 19th centuries. The secret of the earliest settlement built on this defendable rock will never be fully revealed: large-scale excavation work would be necessary, which the extensive land development renders impossible. Judging from the many Roman remains unearthed in the area around Sigmaringen, the 12th century keep known as the 'Roman Tower' could be traced back to a Roman predecessor.

The castle remains that have been preserved (gate, great hall and keep) date back to the Staufer period around 1200. The castle remains were integrated into subsequent buildings. The foundations of the castle buildings are to a large extent identical to the surrounding castle wall.

These remains give us a good idea of how the castle might have looked during the 12th century.

Château de La Brède

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