Pontécoulant estate presents all the distinctive features of nobility: castle, gamekeeper and gardener's detached house, dovecote, landscaping park, vegetable garden, guest houses, farm, woods and grounds. The Le Doulcet de Pontécoulant family arrived there in the 14th century. Their home was rebuilt in the 16th century and enlarged in the 17th. Since the second part of 17th century, the family has lived in Caen and above all in Paris: the castle became a second home. The interior decoration, furniture and daily objects embody the way of life of this 19th century aristocratic family: dining room, lounge, billiard room, rooms in the ground and first floor hold pieces of furniture of diverse origins: French pieces with renown trademarks, exotic and local furniture showing the taste for travels and the Le Doulcet de Pontécoulants' attachment to the region.
References:The Château de Foix dominates the town of Foix. An important tourist site, it is known as a centre of the Cathars. Built on an older 7th-century fortification, the castle is known from 987. In 1002, it was mentioned in the will of Roger I, Count of Carcassonne, who bequeathed the fortress to his youngest child, Bernard. In effect, the family ruling over the region were installed here which allowed them to control access to the upper Ariège valley and to keep surveillance from this strategic point over the lower land, protected behind impregnable walls.
In 1034, the castle became capital of the County of Foix and played a decisive role in medieval military history. During the two following centuries, the castle was home to Counts with shining personalities who became the soul of the Occitan resistance during the crusade against the Albigensians.