Château de Lanquais
CastleHidden Treasure
Château de Lanquais, located in Lanquais (Dordogne), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Castle
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Lanquais, Dordogne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 44.8186, 0.6747
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00082605
At the crossroads of the Middle Ages and the Italian Renaissance, Lanquais blends a crenellated keep from the 15th century and a classical palace born of the royal love affairs of Henri II — a double château, unfinished and fascinating.
History
Château de Lanquais is one of Périgord's most beguiling architectural enigmas. Nestling in the gentle hills of the Dordogne, it has that rare duality that sets it apart from all the other châteaux in the region: two eras, two aesthetics, two souls fused into a single building. On one side, the austere, proud silhouette of a 15th-century medieval manor house, bristling with machicolations and battlements; on the other, a Renaissance main building of Italian elegance, with carefully ordered facades reminiscent of the great royal palaces. The most precious thing about Lanquais is precisely its incompleteness. It is said that the great Renaissance project was never completed. This voluntary or forced interruption has preserved the raw confrontation between two worlds: the severe stone of the Middle Ages and the classical sophistication of the French Renaissance at its zenith. Nowhere else in Périgord is the transition from one era to the next so tangible. The interior of the château is remarkably authentic. Painted ceilings, antique floors, period woodwork and monumental sculpted fireplaces have survived the centuries without major alteration, offering a total immersion in the aristocratic life of the 16th century. The rooms of the Renaissance main building retain the suspended atmosphere of residences that have not forgotten their past. The natural setting adds to the charm of the whole. The château is set in a landscape of Perigord bocage, oak trees and gentle meadows, far from the hustle and bustle of the big tourist attractions. At Lanquais, you take your time. You stop to consider the details of a pedimented dormer window, the curve of a round tower, the succession of horizontal bands that punctuate the facades like an architectural score. It's a castle for the curious, for those who like stones to tell stories.
Architecture
The architecture of Lanquais can be read as a manifesto of two centuries of the art of building in France. The 15th-century medieval part features the usual vocabulary of Périgord seigneurial residences of the period: a large rectangular main building, a massive round tower at the north-east corner, and a crown of machicolations with crenellations running along the tower and the main facade. A free-standing stair turret, attached to the south side, provides vertical access. These defensive features are merely symbolic: Lanquais was already more of an aristocratic residence than a real fortress. The Renaissance main building, perpendicular to the first building, forms a T-shaped plan with it, typical of projects from this period. The elevations bear witness to a strong Italian influence, which was skilfully mastered: wide horizontal ashlar bands divide the floors with classical rigour, while vertical quoins punctuate the façades opposite the windows, creating a harmonious grid pattern. The dormer windows, which pierce the steeply pitched roofs, are crowned with alternating triangular and arched pediments adorned with highly refined sculpted motifs. The interior staircase, housed at the end of a pavilion, leads to a gallery that distributes the flats - a typical layout for the great royal residences of the Loire region. The interior is one of the great surprises of the château: it has remained in an exceptional state of preservation. The original French ceilings, old floors, 16th-century woodwork and finely sculpted monumental fireplaces make up an interior of rare authenticity, which subsequent alterations have not altered. The materials used, mainly blonde Périgord limestone, give the façades the warm hue so characteristic of south-western architecture.
Related Figures
Isabelle de la Tour, demoiselle de Limeuil — maîtresse d'Henri II, à l'origine du chantier RenaissanceHenri II, roi de France — commanditaire présumé du grand projet RenaissanceLes évêques de Périgueux — premiers occupants connus du site, dès l'an milLe Prince Noir (Édouard de Woodstock) — dont les campagnes anglaises aboutirent à la prise du château en 1345Catherine de Médicis — cousine de Mlle de Limeuil, reine de France dont la cour fut le théâtre de la liaison royale
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Château de Lanquais located?
Château de Lanquais is located in Lanquais, Dordogne department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France.
When was Château de Lanquais built?
Château de Lanquais dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Château de Lanquais open to visitors?
Château de Lanquais is currently closed to visitors.