Château-Renard Castle

Château-Renard Castle, locally known as Château de Château-Renard, lies in the town of Château-Renard in the Loiret department in France.

There are 2 castles in the town of Château-Renard: the ruined medieval Château-Renard Castle, atop a wooded hill above the Ouanne River, and the 17th-century La Motte Castle in the valley below. Their histories are, of course, connected, and although the present La Motte is younger than Château-Renard, its foundation is actually older.

The first La Motte Castle dates back to the mid-6th century. At that time, it was a wooden fortification, and the settlement was called Ouanne. The hill where Château-Renard's castle now stands was occupied by a Benedictine priory. In 937, Fromond I was established as Viscount of Sens by Hugh the Great, Duke of the Franks and Count of Paris. A year later, Fromond was exiled to Ouanne by King Louis IV for offending the Archbishop of Sens. Fromond then rebuilt La Motte Castle, but probably still in wood.

When Fromond died in 948, he was succeeded by his son, Renard I. Renard also did not have much love for the clergy and often pillaged local abbeys, including the priory at Ouanne. This led him to be exiled to Ouanne in 961, just like his father. Having earlier seized the Ouanne priory, he then built a stone castle on the priory's site, leaving La Motte for his new castle, and also changed the settlement's name from Ouanne to Château-Renard.

Renard's descendants continued the family tradition of pillaging and general disobedience to their overlords, which led King Louis VI 'the Fat' to destroy Château-Renard Castle in 1110. The Renards, however, then started to rebuild their castle without permission. The king then had it destroyed again in 1131, and the Renards finally submitted.

In 1232, Gaucher II de Joigny was granted royal permission to rebuild Château-Renard Castle. Completed around 1241, it included a massive keep, 5 gates, and 16 towers flanking the walls. Gaucher never saw it finished, for he died in the Holy Land during the Barons' Crusade. Today, only the ruins of this 13th-century castle can be seen.

The Protestant Coligny family bought the castle in 1522, followed by La Motte Castle in 1531. In 1568, during the French Wars of Religion, the Catholic townspeople attacked and partially destroyed Château-Renard Castle. In 1570, the Colignys regained control of their castle and rebuilt only the upper part, including the keep, which was then called the Chastellet.

Through inheritance, Château-Renard passed to the Protestant Dutch royal family, the Oranges. Their castle warden forbade the Catholic townspeople from using the church. They then seized the castle in 1621, and it was dismantled in 1623 on the order of King Louis XIII to prevent its further use in religious or political uprisings. It has remained a ruin ever since.

Today, Château-Renard Castle can be freely visited. Its grounds now house a few residences and the church. The remaining parts of the castle, except for the west walls with the gate, are very ruinous and overgrown. Several sections of the ruins have been covered with safety nets due to the danger of falling masonry.

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