Historical monument

Discovering the château.

Château de Beaugency comprises a seigneurial dwelling and several wings forming outbuildings. The whole forms a large rectangle with a courtyard at its center. The plot is enclosed to the east by a large retaining wall, above which an intimate garden flourishes. To the south, between the Saint-Georges chapel and the Notre-Dame abbey church, there is also a garden.

The listed part is a tall building spanning three levels plus an attic. The listed part, the outbuildings, comprises two large wings on three levels and a more recent building on two levels.

The château boasts four towers:

• A square tower, known as the Longueville, which can be found in Place Dunois.
• A round tower to the north of the plot, visible only from the garden.
• A hexagonal tower housing the spiral staircase.
• Another round tower topped by a hexagonal chamber in the garden, housing small “private cabinets” and an oratory.

To access the different levels of the château, visitors must take the spiral staircase on the east side of the courtyard. This staircase serves the first floor, the second floor and the attic. The attic, which resembles a vessel or an inverted ship’s hull, is formed of a series of small trusses. Some trusses date from winter 1453.

The 3 levels of the château are currently composed of large rooms. Originally, they were divided into smaller rooms by wooden walls. These small rooms could be heated more easily than a large chamber. You will note that the joists of these rooms that make up the ceilings are mostly exquisitely crafted. These rooms also contain beautiful fireplaces decorated with floral and animal motifs. All the floors in the manor house are covered with so-called ‘tomette’ floor tiles. At the time of construction of the château, ‘tomettes’ were the equivalent of the floor tiles of today. They made it possible to cover large surfaces with standard sections of terracotta tiles. The walls are covered with lime-based plaster, which gives them that creamy white colour.

The Château de Beaugency has a chapel. Though deconsecrated now, it was not that long ago that it formed an integral part of life at the château, with services celebrated, especially for the occupants of the beggars’ asylum.

The Château De Beaugency has been restored numerous times and maintained by various owners to ensure it could be passed on to future generations. In particular, the Department has invested a good deal of money in reinforcing the floors; you may thus have noticed the floor-level IPN beams that cross each floor of the château.

Despite the numerous conversions that the Château De Beaugency underwent last century, it has preserved the spirit of the Renaissance, the period when it was built. The mullions on the windows, the timber frames of the staircase in the Longueville Tower, the joists used to create the lovely French-style ceilings, the ‘tomettes’ tiles which can be found on every floor, the spiral staircase, the early 16th-century fresco, the 13th-century Saint George Chapel, the numerous 16th-century doors which still proudly sport their Carvet mouldings, the reconstruction of the original stained glass windows on the windows of the listed part, the stunning 15th-century roof, the Renaissance façade which can be admired from the hanging garden, all bear witness to its period and show how the château has survived through the years despite the occasionally destructive events it has experienced and in spite of the various ways in which it has been used.

Restoration of the Château de Beaugency’s old clock

A witness to time and the past, the Château de Beaugency’s old clock has been restored to its former glory thanks to an ambitious restoration project. This historic mechanism, which has long been silent, has been the subject of meticulous work combining craftsmanship and technical expertise.

Thanks to this restoration, visitors can now rediscover this horological masterpiece and immerse themselves in the fascinating history of the château. A true renaissance for this precious heritage!