Castle of Coudray Salbart

In the 13th century, Poitou was one of the stakes in the war waged by the kings of England Plantagenêt (Richard Coeur de Lion, Jean Sans Terre ...) and of France (Philippe-Auguste, Saint-Louis ...) . In the midst of this conflict, with the financial assistance of Jean Sans Terre and Henri III, the Parthenay-Larchevêque family (or the fairy Mélusine according to legend) built a castle on its border to protect itself from its potential enemies (Niort in the south and the Lusignan family who surrounds it). The conquest of Poitou by Louis IX (Saint Louis) puts an end to the strategic usefulness of the castle which falls into oblivion. Neither altered nor demolished, it passes into many hands (Louis de Guyenne, Arthur de Bretagne count of Richemont, the count of Dunois -Bâtard d'Orléans and companion of Joan of Arc-, the Longueville, the family of La Meilleraye -related to Mazarin -...) to finally become in 1776 the property of Charles d'Artois (future Charles X) who hastened to resell it to Du Fay de la Taillée, ancestors of Pierre Du Dresnay who will sell it in June 2000 at the Niortaise Agglomeration Community.

Historical monument, the Coudray-Salbart castle is today considered by historians and archaeologists as an exceptional model of a 13th century fortified castle in France and England.
The access to the castle was made by a barbican defended by a drawbridge and two towers protecting by a door a large triangular poultry-yard in which the traces of constructions can still be guessed (chapel, forge, oven etc ...).
The castle proper (irregular quadrilateral of approximately 50 mx 25 m) still has its four powerful corner towers: two with spurs and the other two in the middle of the east and west curtain walls. A small interior ditch is the survivor of the one who surrounded a small primitive castle of which some vestiges remain.
The castle, farmyard and barbican complex is surrounded by a wide and deep ditch up to 25 m wide and 20 m high on the east side.
The first floors of all the towers are accessible by stairs (often spiral). Their rooms have different arches (broken cradle, four or eight Plantagenêt warheads ...).
A unique characteristic of the 13th century, the ground floor is composed of a vaulted circulation duct which allows rapid and sheltered circulation around the castle and the entrance to each tower is protected by a stunner.
The curtain walls show traces of hourds support.