Welcome to Château de Guédelon
Chris and I have never built a house. We’ve marvelled and groaned through ‘Grand Designs’, wondering how people achieve amazing results whilst putting themselves through the trauma. With that in mind, can you image building a castle from scratch? You are replicating a build of the thirteenth century. The twist … there are no bulldozers or backhoes to clear the site. There is no cement truck. The bricks ... well you need to make them first! But, before that, you need to make your own tools. Trees need to be cut and seasoned to craft the beams and on it goes. Each tool and component of this castle needs to be made by hand, using only medieval techniques.
Into the forest of Guédelon
Map of the château based on architectural plans for military castles, laid down by Philip II Augustus, King of France from 1180 - 1223.
The project was conceived by Michel Guyot, owner of Château de Saint-Fargeau, who wondered how medieval castles were made. After further research, the idea of building a castle first started in 1995. The building permission was granted in 1997. With a team of scientists, architects, archeologists, historians and castellologists (those who study castles), the idea became a reality. The castle design is based on the architectural plans for military castles, laid down by Philip II Augustus, King of France from 1180 - 1223. The team acquired an abandoned quarry with access to clay and water. The quarry was surrounded by Guédelon forest.
Using only hand-made 13th century tools to quarry the stone needed to build the castle. However, health and safety standards apply and 21st century safety glasses, steel toe-caps etc. are used.
Welcome to Château de Guédelon, located in Treigny, Burgundy.
The Château de Guédelon as it looked in 2012
A visit here feels like you are on a movie set. As you enter the forest, you are immersed in a medieval village. Many people are dressed in period costume and are hard at work, bringing the castle to life.
The carter and horse were an important part of medieval village life
Sand is taken from the quarry to make the mortar
There are 70 people on the team. Of these, 40 are the builders, a mixture of crafts people and those that have learnt their skills onsite. As we wandered through the site, we saw quarrymen, stonemasons, woodcutters, carpenters, blacksmiths, rope-makers, potters, tilers, carters, painters, cooks, weavers and dyers who were all immersed in their craft. The community also manages pigs, cows and geese. Cart horses and donkeys help with work. There is a vegetable garden and even a beehive made of rope.
A stonemason adding detail for windows, doorways and vaults of the château using limestone. This limestone comes from a quarry that is 30km away. The stonemason marked his work and was paid by piece.
We visited in 2012 at the suggestion of the host from our B&B Chambres d’hôtes Puits d’Athie in Appoigny. The day was a bit rainy and the site was muddy. If you are going to visit, I suggest enclosed shoes and avoid wearing anything white.
Woodcutters and carpenters
13 piglets from one sow!
In 2012, paintings were added to the château.
Yet another master craftsperson
The site is only open to the public in July and August, being aligned with the ancient building seasons. Before our trip, I had read Ken Follett’s book ‘The Pillars of the Earth’, a story based around the building of a cathedral. What I found fascinating was that building could only occur during warmer months and then the site would need to be protected from the harsh winter elements with straw. This practice minimised cracking of the mortar and it was simply too cold to be outside working but, also, resulted in protracted construction times. Even in more recent history, think of Gaudi’s La Sagrada Familia, in Barcelona, that is still under construction after 140 years. Like cathedrals, castles also took many decades, even hundreds of years, to build in medieval times.
Cottage in the château grounds used by artisans
It has been ten years since our visit and I would certainly be keen to see the progress that has been made since then. You can visit many fabulous châteaux around France that are fully restored with all of the period furnishings, gold, glitz and glamour. For an alternative grand experience, I highly recommend a visit to Guédelon to witness a castle ‘in the making’.
For a 2021 view of Château de Guédelon, take a look at this short video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5u2-D_ilDxc
Our B&B was in Appoigny, near Auxerre, which is a lovely town 1.5 hours south of Paris, on the Yonne River.
À bientôt!
