L'Isle Castle was built in 1696 by Charles de Chandieu, lieutenant general of the Swiss Guards of Louis XIV, on plans Hardouint Jules Mansard, nephew of the great Mansard. After the hands of different families, it was bought by the municipality of L'Isle in 1876 which transforms it into school classes and as home town.
L'Isle Castle draws a U-shaped plan, between courtyard and garden, with a main building, where are the reception rooms and apartments for teachers and two wings containing services (kitchen, pantry, servants' rooms) and secondary local (archives, library, attic). Note the impressive framing Mansard is in perfect condition. In French-speaking Switzerland, the castle of L'Isle is the first regional example of French classicism and is a key milestone in the dissemination of this current. In 1710, a French garden, with ponds and two rows of trees are created. Waters of the Venoge river are used to establish a comprehensive water plan with a jet of water placed in the axis of the house. The lounge and dining room, the only two original parts furnished are used for cultural or official events. Once the cave was used as a kitchen and refectory for staff and as a prison. After its renovation, different parts of the vaulted and paved spaces are an ideal place for cultural and friendly activities.
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Střekov Castle (Schreckenstein) is perched atop a cliff above the River Elbe, near the city of Ústí nad Labem. It was built in 1316 for John of Luxembourg, the father of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, to guard an important trade route to Germany. After changing hands several times, the castle was acquired by the Lobkowicz family in 1563. Its strategic importance led to occupations by Imperial Habsburg, Saxon, and Swedish forces during the Thirty Years' War, as well as successive sieges by Austrian and Prussian armies during the Seven Years' War.
Although Střekov Castle was heavily damaged during those conflicts and abandoned as a military installation by the end of the 18th century, the 1800s saw many poets and artists visiting the castle, drawn by a new trend of interest in romantic ruins.