Medieval Fortresses in France's 100yr war.

I have called this France's 100yr war but even though it happened in what is now France, the land north west of the Perigord was claimed by the English crown. The name - 100yrs war is one of convenience and hindsight. Officially it began in 1337 and ended in 1453. (A very brief summary at the end)

Left:  Beynac                                                                                  Right:  Castelnaud

Beynac viewed from a Castelnaud window

Several Chateaus in the Perigord region were pivotal in the English /French conflicts. We visited two, Beynac and Castelnaud.

These two have an interesting relationship which made me push to have them visited on the same day. They sit on opposite sides of the Dordogné. Although they never attacked each other outright, their strongholds were too impressive for that, they were constantly spying on each other. The damage to the area was so great that the Pope even got involved. He forced a marriage between the families to stop the feuding. While standing on the battlements of Castelnaud looking down the river towards Beynac we dallied with a little time travel and imagined the effect that a bazooka or an Apache chopper would have had in the Medieval world.

Left:  Looking down the Dordogné towards Castelnaud lost in the fog.  Right: The river winding west.

The car park was full so we had a petite
stroll from a field to Castelnaud

The Castelnaud family of Caumont controlled the castle until the revolution and were mostly in sympathy with the English during the 100yr War.  A couple of self seeking captains played a dangerous game of treachery which saw the castle go to the highest bidder over several years.

Shops and restaurants surround the base - crépe for lunch?

Canon and arrow slits - not big enough for escape!

Castelnaud had copious displays of weapons

 Castelnaud was bought by Kléber Rossillon in 1966. He put a highly qualified team to work on its restoration. by 1985 enough was rebuilt for it to be opened to the public. Now all has been completed and a huge collection of Medieval weapons are displayed. At the base of the castle are many stores and eating places. The Castle may not be needed as a fortress to protect the area anymore but it is still providing for them with employment opportunities and a growing population.

More weapons at Castelnaud. The centre picture shows an attack on one of the river castles.  Poor horses.

Down the river was another stronghold for tourists to visit, we arrived early in the morning so fewer of them

Stair Stonework at Beynac

Defence strategies at Beynac - they also had a walled moat either side of the gatehouse(left) to the cliff.

Building on the edge of a cliff detered attack.      Left: View from the Beynac Battlements :Right
The village wasn't built until late in the Renaissance - no protection from river raids when at war. 

The fortress of Beynac was another long term family seat.  The Lords and Barons of Beynac owned it for 800 yrs with a few periods of theft. Richard the Lionheart held it for ten years, it was won back weeks after his death. This area of France was a strong supporter of the Cathar sect. It began as a negative reaction to the corruption of the Roman Catholic Church. Their aim was to attain perfection, as the believers spread their beliefs by word of mouth, different versions of the faith could be found, this was complicated further by the fact that there were a large variety of languages in the area.

Inside Beynac - Left: the ladies dining room with one of the Unicorn tapestries Right: Part of the Beynac Baron's suite

Beynac was the central seat of the region. The Barons from Biron, Bourdeilles and Mareuil would meet in this Great Hall to discuss petitions and advice they wished to present to the King as part of their role in the 'Estates General'(much like the English Parliament but without he right of approval of policy. The banner to the left is Beynacs and to the right Castlenaud's, the rampant lion may reflect the long English influence of this fortress.

Once an emissary, sent by the Pope, was killed for trying to reason with a group of Cathars, a crusade to cleanse the kingdom of them was called. They believed that all physical manifestations were evil - that Satan had created the world to distract humanity from the spiritual life. They believed that upon death they would reincarnate to attempt perfection again or if they'd reached that state they would forever reside, as spirit, with the universe in perfect harmony. Hence they did not fear death and were ferocious fighters. I'm very glad that the next attempt at cleansing church would be based on Biblical writings rather than hearsay. Simon de Montfort was the Church's strong arm.  The family of Beynac were besieged as named Cathar supporters but the Castle history insists that Montfort just wanted the territory back for his liege Lord - the Count of Toulouse.

Left: A heavily armoured door into the kitchen courtyard from the stable courtyard.
Right:Front door and drawbridge from the kitchen courtyard was the only entrance into the castle during the 100yrs war.

Left: Bench and table for the door guards - swords ever at the ready
Right: Stone ramp leading from the central household courtyard through the kitchen to the front door.  The Baron and his knights rode their horses up this ramp into the house. The cooking facilities are mainly chopping blocks, meat hooks and giant cauldron fires. French cuisine may have been a little simpler in those times.

 Another Chateau we visited was Biron. It was a later building and not as heavily involved in the wars as the other two because it is further south. Even so a common saying in France 'Con comme Biron' meaning duped like Biron, refers to one of the Duke's loyalty to his English King - Henry, who did not come and save him from execution when caught by the French King and tried for treason. This castle was left to the state by the last owners after erosion and neglect had left it in a sorry state.  The French Ministry of Culture supplied funding for repairs that are well under way.

Looking up to and down from Chateau Biron

Biron had the most spectacular Chapel artwork.
There was a little group of holiday kids creating their own heraldic shields at the back when we visited.

The Ministry of Culture funds went towards recreating this floor. Visitors have to swish around eh room on these special cloths to protect the parquetry. In another tower we saw how the unrenovated timber had fared - same pattern but rotting away and riddled with wood worm.

Entrance to the art/craft fair

The site has a lovely café, produce store where we bought some delicious honey and found freshly picked saffron for sale. One of the lower rooms was open for a local art and craft fair where Granny and I bought ceramic local leaf dishes as a memory of the area. The castle Biron doesn't have any English guides but there are a few signs around that explain the historical use of the different wings. The layout of this place certainly provides a more pleasant place to live than the other medieval sites we visited. The renovated ballroom is available to hire for weddings and dances and while we were there a band was setting up for a concert in the outer courtyard.

As we wandered through these old places with the buzz of commerce and audio guides instead of the clanking of steel and the whisper of long dresses - it was easy to imagine the people that were needed to keep them functioning. For each knight a castle was able to provide to their Liege, 100 servants from the fields to the kitchens, from stables to the armory spent their lives in harsh conditions. Those with faith had warm hearts at least. For those without, cruelty was their daily reality; not so different from today in many parts of the world I guess.

Biron inner court with a beautiful patio overlooking the valley north. Ballroom to the left, new floor room above the arch, the door to the right gives access to a large tower with big rooms.

This huge kitchen space had many specialist rooms and pantries leading off it.
It looks like the Biron Barons really knew how to party. To bad they lost their heads.

 Skip this synopsis of the 100yrs war if History bores you to tears: 
I find the people who litter these years fascinating. In fact if you are a fan of Blackadder, look up Louis XI whose nick names were 'the cunning' and 'the universal spider' - definitely a French ancestor I think.

In 1154 Henry II's ownership of the great western Duchys, Normandy, Brittany and Aquitane made the him far more powerful than the Capetian dynasty that claimed the throne of France. Henry's disputs with his sons, Richard the Lionheart and John Lackland weakened this power and gave crafty Phillip II a chance to retake what he considered were French territories. Richard defended his claims to these Duchy's in person, perhaps fighting to protect his mother's(Eleanor of Aquitaine) and wife's(Anne of Navarre) inheritance. He faced life threatening battles on crusade and against French troops but his life was ended by a young boy's arrow of vengence for killing his father and brother in battle while clowning around without his chain mail on his own ramparts at Chalus. His doctor screwed up when removing the arrow and the wound turned gangrenous. In the vaccum of power left after Richard's death, Phillip VI won back the Guyenne (French possessions of the King of England).

In 1337 Edward III retailiated by claiming the throne of France and sending troops to recapture Normandy, Brittany and Aquitaine. The fighting waged through famine, plague, treaties made when one side need to regroup then broken at the sniff of any advantage and changes of rule.

In 1422, Henry VI was the acknowledged King of both countries until Joan of Arc lead troops to a victory at the Orleans' siege then had Charles VII anointed King of France in Rheims. The English finally withdrew their troops after a sour grapes collusion with a monstrous of act of French duplicity and misogyny - the delivery of the Maid of Orleans, she was later sainted for her heroic motivation of French nationalism. Her success was an embarrassment to the new King, whose own endurance, troops and strategies had continually failed. That a woman should have visions and military success must surely lie at the feet of the devil, so the English burnt her at the stake for witch craft.

Eventually France's first standing army turned the tide and won a succession of major battles in the early 1450s. The English monarch(s) were distracted and impoverished by the War of the Roses so the English vacated France completely, leaving allies holding Burgundy and Brittany in 1456.
Edward IV bought the largest army to ever leave England back to France but he was unhappy with his ally's preparations so sold out to the Treaty of Picquigny in 1475. Ed IV and Louis XI agreed to a 7 year truce, an engagement between Elizabeth of York and the French dauphin(Charles VIII in time) and a yearly tribute (the French preferred to call it a bribe) of 50 000 gold crowns and an immediate sum of 75 000 gold crowns. The wedding never happened, Charles was betrothed to an Austrian princess who was living in the French court but he ditched her for the 14yr old Anne of Brittany who had married herself by proxy to Max II, the Hapsburg. That marriage was shunned by Charles as unbinding for with Anne came her Duchy.

England was left with only Calais still in hand until Henry VIII's embarrassment in the 1500s when the English lost all claim on the continent.