Château de Fère-en-Tardenois, Fère-en-Tardenois, France

The Château de Fère-en-Tardenois is a ruined castle in the commune of Fère-en-Tardenois in the Aisne département. Construction of the original castle began in 1206. Little of that remains today. It had seven towers on an enormous artificial motte whose slopes were covered in slabs of sandstone and served as a model for numerous other castles. The connétable Anne de Montmorency, companion of Francis I, transformed the castle in around 1528. In 1555, he enlarged it with the addition of the famous Renaissance bridge carrying a covered gallery. These works were carried out by the architect Jean Bullant (who constructed the gallery at the Château de Chenonceaux) and, possibly, the sculptor Jean Goujon, which would explain the quality of the sculptures, the stone and the colours.

Ownership of the castle is shared by the département and a private company. It is open to the public.

References:

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User Reviews

Idse Beukema (4 years ago)
Impressive ruins of an old castle. The Castle van be visited, but there is nothing else to see or do. A little explanation about the history would have been nice.

Arno Belham (4 years ago)
A real diamond in the rough. 5 star hotel & spa, in a 18th century castle. hidden behind a 13-century built castle. Two style next to each other. Great welcoming staff and calm outdoors. Very relaxing. Highly recommended.

Stephan de Oude (5 years ago)
Spectacular place, a real sight to see. It seemed to be being renovated (rebuild). For this they have a 150 year plan. There is no reception or entrance port, I recommend to just park and go see the sight!

aleks lewis (5 years ago)
Great atmosphere, enormous selection of wines, good service and the food was wonderful

Ben Williams (5 years ago)
Beautiful Castle, free to visit and unique construction. Would love to learn more about the place and maybe one day I can afford to book a room in the Hotel!

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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 Fère-en-Tardenois

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