Vauguillain Castle

Vauguillain Castle, locally known as Château de Vauguillain, lies on a wooded hill overlooking the village of Saint-Julien-du-Sault in the Yonne department in France.

The castle was founded in the late 12th century, around 1168, by Archbishop William of Champagne, also known as William of the White Hands. It included a fortified manor and a chapel dedicated to Saint-Julien. A Gallo-Roman sarcophagus found nearby in 1850 suggests the site had been in use even before the medieval period.

In the 14th century, Symon de Jussemicourt is recorded as governor in 1363. In that same century, during the Hundred Years’ War, the enclosure was destroyed and rebuilt by local inhabitants. This was again the case in 1406, and again in 1492, during which Tristan de Salazar, Archbishop of Sens, also constructed stables and outbuildings.

By the early 16th century, the complex consisted of curtain walls, a chapel, a round tower known as the 'Tour Baron', and a square tower. The chapel, built in 1193, remains the main surviving structure today.

In 1630, the castle was dismantled following the royal ordinance of Cardinal Richelieu of 1626. The chapel, however, was preserved and maintained by the villagers until the late 18th century.

Originally, the southern slopes beneath the castle walls were covered with vineyards until they were destroyed by an attack of grape phylloxera (an insect pest originating in North America) in the late 19th century. The ramparts were partly restored in 1981.

At present, Vauguillain Castle is freely accessible. The chapel, however, is closed off.

Gallery