Handle stones, trowels and mortar to rebuild this castle steeped in history!
Immerse yourself in the art of medieval masonry and its ancestral techniques!
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Every year, the Château de Brie-Comte-Robert organizes workcamps for heritage enthusiasts and those interested in traditional craftsmanship.
Once again this year, we're offering you the chance to take part in an exceptional traditional masonry course and actively contribute to the reconstruction of this medieval castle.
Supervised by a heritage professional, the group of volunteers will learn or perfect their masonry skills, following the techniques used in the Middle Ages.
Each volunteer will play a full part in rebuilding elements of the 12th-century castle.
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The medieval château of Brie-Comte-Robert is located on a small island in the center of the ancient capital of the Brie region:
Brie-Comte-Robert
Square in plan and surrounded by a moat, the château is gradually becoming a major Île-de-France heritage site, thanks to the efforts of the association.
International volunteer workcamps and technical courses are organized there all year round.
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History of the château and the associative project
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Count Robert 1er de Dreux, brother of King Louis VII of France, had the Château de Brie built around 1160 to assert his power.
This fortress, innovative for its time, prefigured the castles built in the 13th century by Philippe II-Auguste.
Since 1982, the commune, which owns the site, has been carrying out a major development campaign, including partial cleaning of the moats and lowering of the lices, to enhance this exceptional site.
In 1982, the Friends of the Old Castle association took over, continuing the work of the municipality and undertaking a programmed archaeological excavation and enhancement of the castle.
The castle was excavated from 1982 to 2012.
Since then, a permanent work site has been set up to study and restore the castle.
More than 1,000 volunteers have already taken part in the renovation, and technical training courses are offered on a regular basis.
A major new restoration and enhancement campaign is now underway, and the association is embarking on a number of important new projects.
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With reconstruction work scheduled for this year, your mission
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As part of the project to enhance the Château de Brie-Comte-Robert, the Amis du Vieux Château association is continuing to rebuild the 12th-century logis seigneurial.
This year, the project involves the identical reconstruction of a doorway separating rooms A and B of the seigniorial dwelling, as well as a 4-meter high dividing wall. This is an old load-bearing wall separating rooms A and B adjoining the curtain wall.
Traditional masonry volunteers will learn all the steps involved in traditional masonry as practiced in the Middle Ages.
Each volunteer will learn how to prepare the stones and rubble before laying them, how to compose the mortar, how to fetch the sand that makes up the mortar themselves, and how to lay and mason the quoins, rebated jambs, lintels and ceiling slabs.
This project follows on from two stone-cutting projects:
- Spring (April 11-20, 2025)
- Summer (July 4 to 13, 2025)
The project should be completed after the two traditional masonry workcamps.
The stones cut by the volunteers will be used to raise the 4-metre-high wall separating rooms A and B of the seigniorial dwelling during the subsequent traditional masonry worksite.
(Traditional masonry work from July 13 to 30, 2025)
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During your stay, you'll be supervised by 2 guides.
There will be a technical supervisor who will teach you all about traditional building techniques, assisted bya pedagogical supervisor who will help you organize daily life and activities.
The time set aside for work is around 32 hours per week for adults.
Depending on the weather, work on the site generally takes place in the morning, starting relatively early if hot weather is forecast.
After the morning's work, there's a lunch break and the site resumes in the afternoon.
It stops at the end of the afternoon. In the evenings, you can relax and enjoy outdoor and discovery activities.
A vehicle is made available to the organizers to help them organize outings.
You'll take it in turns to prepare meals as a team. This way, everyone can share recipes from their own region, and take advantage of the stay to sample the countless specialities of other regions or countries. If you're already a "chef", that's perfect; if you're not... Get cooking!
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Volunteers will spend the night at their convenience, either in a tent on the château grounds or, if the weather is bad inside the building, in a communal room.
Each participant is invited to bring his or her own equipment.
Naturally, hot-water showers and several toilets will be available to ensure your comfort during your stay.
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Leisure and other activities
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During your stay with us, "discovery time" is devoted to the medieval heritage of the town of Brie-Comte-Robert.
The rest day is usually devoted to a leisure activity or an outing in the forest of Fontainebleau (Barbizon).
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- No special skills are required to take part.
Once you have pre-registered, please contact us by telephone on the number displayed: 06 62 74 87 57
The telephone call will enable us to get to know you better and to give you more details about the site (organization, arrival arrangements, etc.).
You'll be able to ask us any questions you may have, and let us know what you need to make your stay as comfortable as possible.
We look forward to welcoming you from 5pm on Friday April 11.
Departures will take place on Sunday April 20 after 5pm.
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Last year's volunteer achievements
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In 2024, the traditional masonry volunteer workcamp laid all the stones for the base of the chapel buttress, and masoned these.
The project also raised the well adjoining the chapel, as well as the staircase wall separating rooms B and C of the seigniorial dwelling.
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Stones cut and laid at the base of the buttress of the former chapel (2024)
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Association REMPART, who are we?
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