Charlus Castle

Charlus Castle, locally known as Château de Charlus, lies east of the hamlet of the same name, in the Cantal department in France.

The basaltic Charlus Peak already contained a fortification in the 9th century. The present, meager, remains are of a feudal castle that was built during the 12th century by the House of Ventadour, who were Lords of Charlus. The castle was one of the most important fortresses in the Haute-Auvergne.

The Ventadours sold it in 1351 to Guillaume III Roger de Beaufort, Viscount of Turenne. His son Raimond inherited the castle later that century. During the Hundred Years' War the castle was taken by the English and taken back by the French. During an interlude in the war, Raimond housed a garrison of unemployed soldiers in the castle who were raiding the countryside. This led to a successful siege of several months by Bernard d'Armagnac, Viscount of Carlat and Constable of France in 1408.

In the 16th century Charlus Castle was restored by the Lévis family. They owned the castle until its demise in the 16th century. It was dismantled in 1633 on the order of Cardinal Richelieu. Although the castle was then abandoned by its owners, the lodgings however were still inhabitable until 1689 when the site turned into a stone quarry.

At present Charlus Castle can freely be visited. As you can see, almost nothing remains of this castle but a few overgrown wall fragments, so this is not one to visit. Although the views of the surrounding countryside are very nice.

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