Turn of Breuil

The Tour of Breuil to Dignac in Charente dominates the sources of the Échelle. The keep and the vault are registered with the additional inventory of the Historic buildings.

Structure

This whole of buildings, of which certain old, is somewhat crushed by the Tour which gives its name to the locality. It is located at the end of a movement of ground dominating the sources and the high wooded valley of the Scale (which becomes the Touvre ). It is currently composed of a square tower formerly isolated and surrounded from ditches, built fine of XIVe, beginning of the 15th century, i.e. towards the end of the Guerre One hundred year old, perhaps by the English. For others it would date only from the 17th century.

the tower

This monumental, by 12 meters out of 9 meters, high rectangular tower, with the walls a 1,80 m thickness at their base, on the floors separated by floors with Machicoulis 20 meters is surmounted by a parapet bored of crénaux. The home established around a rectangular court is more recent.

One notices on the circumference of the windows, moreover modified, the holes of the bars which defended the access of them. The covered way on machicolation was altered at the 17th century (high wall outside decorated with shells, paved way, windows, archères).

It is obvious that it acted, in the beginning, of a building in purely military matter of monitoring and defense, flanked elements of dwelling and exploitation for the personnel, small buildings closed again on an interior court where one can still find a loophole and elements of walls of a beautiful stone equipment of more than 1 m thickness. It is only about the 16th century, undoubtedly, that this unit was described as “Home and Noble Hotel” (sic).

Formerly a hexagonal tower of which there remains part of the staircase in spiral which leads kitchen to the arched cellar and a carved of XVe, moved main door, flanked the apartment building and undoubtedly ordered a postern of access.

other buildings

the dwelling is made of two bodies of building, the old one in North, in withdrawal of the Tower, itself altered, to which is joined, in the South, the modern building dating from the 19th century (ground floor of the 17th century, the 1^er stage whose current hall connecting these buildings to the Tower go back only to 1920).

The 1 m 20 thickness of the wall between these two buildings shows well that it is about the old external wall.

the rectangular commun runs have old parts which are easily recognizable: vault, turret and crenels… etc

the small vault, although very damaged (it was already unused before the Révolution of 1789) remains interesting by remainders of frescos of the beginning of XVe perhaps even of the 14th century.

One sees a knight there being adoubé, in front of him a bishop who blesses it, behind his guardian angel, further Saint Christophe and his stick, Saint Michel and his lance, Sainte Beard and his tower. At the bottom on the right of the furnace bridge one guesses a king crowns at the head and sceptre in flower of lily to the hand. On the left a woman with horse is suspected. The very tight poutrage shows traces of old paintings.

The keep and the vault were registered with the additional inventory of the Historic buildings by Arrêté of December 23rd, 1964 of the Minister of state in charge of the cultural affairs.

History of the Tower: two centuries of heritage

The time of construction of the Tower is, according to the experts in general, towards the end of the 14th century, beginning of XVe, i.e. towards the end of the Hundred year old War. Let us recall that this war ended by the battles of Formigny (1450) and Castillon (1453) under the reign of the king Charles VII (Jeanne d' Arc having been burned with Rouen in 1431). If it were really built by the English on the site of an old strong house, this construction would be placed, undoubtedly, between 1360 (Traité of Brétigny whose Jean the Good paid his release by yielding to Edouard III the Poitou, the Angoumois and the Périgord) and 1732, time when, under Charles V, Duguesclin took again with English the majority fortified towns of these provinces. It should be remembered that, of the beginning of XIIIe, the Angoumois being the stronghold of the Lusignan, counts de Poitiers, of Walk and Angouleme, until the medium of XVe century, this area was the theater of ceaseless combat between the kings of France and the king of England become their vassal since Aliénor of Aquitaine had married in second wedding Henri II king d' Angleterre, duke of Angou and had become thus prince d' Aquitaine (1162). But there would exist documents indicating that Breuil Maison Strong would have been built around the years 1280.

Undoubtedly this tower, as well as the exploitation and apartment buildings built close to it, it was held with the beginning by a small garrison placed by the counts of Angouleme, or the their vassal lords of the manor of Villebois (Dignac was in extreme cases of the châtellenie). It kept the outlets of Périgord by the threshold of the Marronnière towards the high valley of the Scale and Touvre, natural access road towards Angouleme, flanked on a side by the Pouyaud and other by the Maine Léonard, protecting the small priory and village from Dignac.

It is only at XVIe and XVIIe centuries that the first documents make it possible to identify the holders of this “Noble Home” who were then the Raymond, widespread important family in the area (Raymond de Riberolle, Bourderon of Raymond Sr. of Aubeterre (1363) and very turbulent. One of them at the XVIIe century: Roger of Raymond, wire of Joseph, lord of Breuil, and Jeanne de Lepinay, assassinated Jean Arnaud with whom his father owed 26.000 books and who had dared to become purchaser of Breuil and Pouyaud while the Raymond were in prison because of their misdeeds and exactions.

To the 18th century Arnauld de Boueix yields Breuil to his/her relative Arnauld de Ronsenac.

In 1576, Breuil had become by heritage, the property “top and powerful lord” François of Laurencie, marquis de Charras, baron de Neuvicq, Maître of Camp of Cavalry… etc This last sold the stronghold the April 22nd 1774 (for 63.000 books, act of Mrs. Laubas, notary) with Jean Leroy de Lenchères, knight, sergeant of the Armies of the King, knight of the Orders of Saint Louis. He was the second wire of Anthoine sior of Breuil de Bonneuil (castle of Breuil de Bonneuil, classified, to 8 km of Chateauneuf s/Charente). The property extended then until the Renonfies and to the mill from Etaule on approximately 300 hectares.

This Jean de Lenchères was governor of Corte, pacified the Corsica and died in 50 years marshal of the Camps and Armées of the King. The legend tells that it put in prison certain Mr. de Bonaparte who was not other than the father of Napoleon Bonaparte.

Leroy de Lenchères were a very former family of the countries, related in Galard de Béarn and whose stronghold of origin seems well to have been Maine Léonard (Breuil having entered this family by heritage only in 1716).

Maine Léonard remained property of Lenchères until about 1920. The little girl of Jean de Lenchères, Elisabeth, wife Louis Benjamin Fernand of the Rocks of Chassay and brings Breuil to him about 1845 (the goods had been restored after the emigration). Their daughter and heiress, Odette of the Rocks of Chassay (1846-1940, back grandmother of the current owner) married Arnaud de Laferrière who left this property to his second wire Robert de Laferrière, which, without child, had like heiress her niece Marie-Therese de Laferrière, marries of colonel Xavier de Villemandy of Mesnière, father of Bruno de Villemandy of Mesnière, only sons and current owner.

The Tower of Breuil has been thus in the same family (by the women) for more than two centuries.

As a memory (family) Odette de Chassay had two sisters who became, one, Catherine, Mrs. de Larivière and the other, Marguerite, Mrs. X. Vignaud d' Essenat, and a brother, Richard, who died for France during the war of 1870-1871.

Short History of the county of Angouleme

Taillefer, the first counts d' Angoulême (most known: Bougrin, Guillaume II and IV, 868 at approximately 1200) were vassal dukes of Aquitaine. Aliénor, last heiress of Guillaume X, duke of Aquitaine, divorces Louis, dolphin and future Louis VII, and marries in 1162 Henri of Anjou, Plantagenêt, which became Henri II, king d' Angleterre and duke of Aquitaine. His/her son Richard Lion-hearted seizes the Poitou, Angoumois and Périgord but is killed under the walls of Châlus in 1199. His/her brother Jean Without Ground continues this episodical fight during which the Lusignan counts de Poitiers and the counts of Angouleme guerroient sometimes on a side, sometimes of the other. Isabelle, girl of the count d' Angoulême, initially promised in marriage of Hugues de Lusignan, Jean wife Without Ground and become in her turn Queen of England (beautiful girl of Aliénor). With died of this last, killed in 1216, she marries her ex-been engaged Hugues de Lusignan, count de Poitiers who becomes thus count d' Angoulême. They are the reigns of Philippe-Auguste († 1223) who in Bouvines crushed Jean Without Ground, of his son Louis VIII and Blanche of Castille then their son Louis IX (Saint Louis) which with Taillebourg still overcame the English.

In 1308 following discords in their successions, Philippe Beautiful the confiscates in Lusignan, with the profit of the crown, the county of Angouleme.

From 1337 to 1453 it was the One hundred Year old war with the reverses of Crécy (1346), Poitiers (1356) and the treaty of Brétigny in 1360 by which Jean the Good buys his release by the abandonment of Poitou, Angoumois and Périgord with Edouard III king d' Angleterre. But since 1372, this last having refused to arise in front of its suzerain the king of France to give an account of its exactions, the fight begins again and all is reconquered by Bertrand Duguesclin.

Then the fortune of the weapons having turned it was the disaster of Azincourt in 1415, but at once after, the epopee of Jeanne d' Arc (burned in Rouen in 1431) and the brilliant reconquest of the kingdom by Charles VII (Xaintrailles, Dunois, Richemont) then crushing them victories of Formigny (1450) and Castillon (1453 died of Talbot) put an end to the One hundred Year old war.

The county of Angouleme, after some vicissitudes, is given in prerogative to Louis of Orleans, brother of the King, which succeeded after its captivity, his/her Jean son, “the Good Count Jean” († 1467). Came then Charles married to Louise from Savoy, mother of François 1st. This last, become king de France, the county, set up in duchy, was definitively included in the royal field (the last duke of Angouleme was the count d' Artois, become Charles X).

This short outline shows how much this area, between XIIe and XVe century, was devastated by the wars. But it is necessary well to represent those like very episodical and noncontinuous, localized between vassal lords of kings de France and England, which were, in addition, combined by often contradictory marriages and inextricable family ties and interests.

With XVIe century it was the Rebirth, then the wars of religion which particularly ensanglantèrent Charente, Saintonge and Aunis - country of reform - to lead with the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes to the XVIIe century (1685) by Louis XIV to the exodus of much of Resident of Charente.

Finally this area completely integrated into the kingdom of France was nothing any more but the reflection, at the local level, of the national great events, wars and revolutions, whose alas, our Country does not miss.

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