Turn of Castle-Chervix

The Tour of Castle-Chervix is the old keep of a strong Château located on the commune of Castle-Chervix (High-Vienna, France).

Architectural aspects

This Keep, called “the Tower”, culminates to 418 m of altitude and measurement 32 m in height. It is classified Historic building and made party of the square keeps best preserved. It is of rectangular plan (9x13m), which involves a system of Contrefort S different according to the sides. In north and the south, there are three buttresses supporting two arcade S into full clotheshanger. In the west, there are of them only two confining an arcade, which is divided into two blind arcades in semicircular arch, falling down on a common corbel. Those of the east were demolished.

The walls have a 2 m thickness and are built with irregular granite and schist stones. The keep had three stages, separated by wood floors and were to communicate by removable scales.

On the southern face the door of principal access to 7,30 m of the ground is located. Another door is present at two thirds height of the second stage and a Archère with the third. The face east comprises two doors located one above the other. The western face presents a very narrow archère in the middle of the same stage and a door to two thirds height and on the northern face, there are two coupled windows, in semicircular arch, separated by a round post.

There also exists, with the foot of the tower, a bowel closed with “cabins” of each with dimensions. The whole on ten meters and not exceeding 1 m height.

This hiding place allowed stoker of food and to withdraw from the reprisals armed bands which furrowed sometimes the area.

History

The tower of Castle-Chervix is the old keep of the strong castle built by the Viscounts of Limoges at the 12th century. They sent to it its principal prisoners as in the castles of Aixe, Nontron and Excideuil.

During the 14th century, the English seize some twice, in 1356 and 1380. The second time, they holds to with it garrison until in 1381, then leave it with the help of an amount of money.

At the 15th century, Gouffier of the Hermit, captain of Châlucet, buys the Châtellenie Castle-Chervix with Jean V of Brittany. Its family wanted a little later to repurchase it thanks to a right stipulated in the sale contract, but Gouffier was opposed to it and one needed an ordinance of the king Charles VII, in 1455, so that it is deprived some. Later, the castle is sold, then yielded again, in 1487, with the lords of Saint Jean-Ligoure, Jean and Antoine de Coignac.

The fire

The October 6th 1553, Castle-Chervix is the theater of a drama of the madness, François de Coignac, lord of Chervix Castle was haunted, like so many others, by the idea of the manufacture of the Or or the change of any gold metal thanks to the solidified mercury.

With this intention, it associates certain Bernardiera, priest of doubtful reputation. It installs a Laboratoire in a tower isolated from the castle. The father-in-law of François de Coignac, interested by the Alchemy, was accused of falsification of currency and conduit to the Châtelet of Angouleme. His/her son-in-law, extremely moved, went to plead his cause and obtained “that good justice would be made”.

On its return, he tells the history with Bernardiera. Fearing that justice comes to be interested in their activity, he convinces it that he was to perish with his family at the same time as the destruction of the building. Coignac not wanting to take part in this slaughter went to take refuge with the Puy-of-Bar, leaving the free field with the priest and an accomplice.

Using of subterfuges, Bernardiera attracts Dame Coignac in the laboratory where it kills it out of a blow of scraping-knife, then it was the turn of the children, while his accomplice dealt with the servants the ones after the others, except small shepherd who, going up of the cellar intended to shout and took refuge there again. The bodies of unhappy were piled up in the laboratory where it was put fire. It gains the remainder of the castle, saving only the current keep.

After 2 days, the small shepherd left his hiding-place and told the terrible history. This account came to the ears from the judges from Présidial (the first great business which the new room had to treat) which made seek the culprits. Bernardiera confessed its crime, it was tortured, coiled, quartered and decapitated in Limoges, as for Coignac, taken refuge in Switzerland, it was condemned to have the distinct head.

At the end of the 16th century, Huguenot S seize some, but little of time, because it is taken again to them almost at once. The ground of Castle-Chervix is confiscated by the king and given to the lord of Lanzat. The castle, which was never repaired, knows a succession of owners then, until 1660, date on which its ruins were acquired by the family of Joussineau de Tourdonnet, which preserved them, seems it, until the Revolution.

So about 1860, there remained still walls from 12 to 15 m in height in the east and in the south of the tower, today there does not remain any more some walls which exceed hardly the level of the ground and the keep.

Christian Remy: " Center higher learning of civilization médiévale" December 11th, 2003

See too

the site of the community of commune of Issaure

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