Château de Lescours
CastleHidden Treasure
Château de Lescours, located in Saint-Sulpice-de-Faleyrens (Gironde), 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
- Saint-Sulpice-de-Faleyrens, Gironde, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 44.8775, -0.1957
- Mérimée Reference
- PA33000197
At the gates of Saint-Émilion, the château de Lescours blends a medieval tower from the 14th century with an 18th-century wine-grower's residence, listed as a Monument Historique. Here, the Girondine limestone and the vine are one and the same.
History
Nestling in the vineyards of Saint-Sulpice-de-Faleyrens, just a stone's throw from the world-famous Saint-Émilion, Château de Lescours is one of those buildings that encapsulate several centuries of rural and aristocratic history in the Gironde. Its silhouette, made up of a sturdy medieval tower set against a main building renovated in the 18th century, perfectly embodies the continuity of a terroir where architecture and viticulture have always progressed hand in hand. What makes Lescours stand out in the landscape of Bordeaux châteaux is precisely this stratification, which is visible to the naked eye: the thick 14th-century foundations tell of the defensive needs of a Guyenne region disputed between the Capetians and the Plantagenets, while the more airy 18th-century wings bear witness to the economic boom driven by the wine trade with England and Holland. Listed as a Historic Monument since December 2015, the ensemble now benefits from protection that guarantees the continuity of this dialogue between the ages. Visiting Lescours also means entering a living winery, where the cellars extend the ancient walls with an almost organic coherence. Visitors immediately realise that this is not a château museum: the smells of barrel wood and damp stone, the presence of vats behind century-old porches, give the visit a rare authenticity. Tasting the wines produced on the estate - predominantly Merlot red Bordeaux, as befits the right bank of the Dordogne - puts the visit firmly in the present. The natural setting is not to be outdone. The vines surround the château on all sides, creating a striking chromatic spectacle as the seasons go by: the soft green of spring, the burnt gold of autumn, the grey-blue of winter revealing the stones in their most expressive nakedness. For the photographer and the heritage-loving walker alike, Lescours offers perspectives where the built and the living seem inseparable.
Architecture
Château de Lescours boasts the two-headed architecture typical of Gironde estates that have survived the passage of time without any abrupt changes. The medieval core, consisting of an Aquitaine limestone tower, is striking for the thickness of its walls and the sobriety of its construction. Carved from yellow to golden limestone quarried locally - the same material used to build the monuments of nearby Saint-Émilion - this tower displays the typical characteristics of 14th-century defensive architecture in the Bordeaux region: a massive base, narrow openings and sufficient height to dominate the surrounding vineyards. Corbels and traces of machicolation bear witness to the military concerns of its early builders. The eighteenth-century main building, which completes and extends the composition, adopts a more serene and symmetrical architectural vocabulary, faithful to the French classical spirit as expressed in the chartreuses and Bordeaux mansions of the period. The facades are organised around regularly-spaced windows with small panes of wood, cornices emphasise the horizontal elevations, and the low-pitched roofs are covered with flat tiles. The outbuildings and wine storehouses, arranged around a working courtyard, complete the architectural programme and bear witness to the estate's original wine-growing vocation. The ensemble forms a coherent whole despite its chronologically fragmented origins, a unity conferred by the limestone common to all the parts and the reasoned implantation in the vineyard landscape.
Related Figures
Seigneur inconnu du XIVe siècle, fondateur probable de la tour médiévale de LescoursPropriétaires nobles de l'Ancien Régime ayant commandé le remaniement classique du XVIIIe siècleNégociants bordelais du XVIIIe siècle liés au commerce du vin avec la Hollande et l'AngleterrePropriétaires du XIXe siècle ayant maintenu le domaine dans la mouvance de l'appellation Saint-ÉmilionReprésentants actuels de la famille propriétaire, gardiens de l'inscription aux Monuments Historiques
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Château de Lescours located?
Château de Lescours is located in Saint-Sulpice-de-Faleyrens, Gironde department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France.
When was Château de Lescours built?
Château de Lescours dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Château de Lescours open to visitors?
Château de Lescours is currently closed to visitors.