POMPADOUR CASTLE

It was in the 11th century that Guy de Lastours fortified the site and built his motte castle. Of the original building, only the high wall and eight of the nine guard towers of the enclosure, surrounded by dry moats, remain. Over time, the outer walls surrounding the castle have been destroyed or modified, softening the fortress, the drawbridge has been removed and a Renaissance porch now welcomes visitors. However, the few cannon towers give an idea of its former power. Its well-proportioned dimensions, its towers with pointed roofs, its mullioned windows, its machicolations and its parapet walk bear witness to the eventful history, made up of attacks and fires, that the building has known for nearly nine hundred years. King Louis XV bought the marquisate and gave the title, the property and the income to his favourite Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, the future Madame de Pompadour. Her daughter, Alexandrine Le Normant d'Etiolles, laid the foundations of horse breeding in Pompadour. Napoleon I reorganized the stud farm, which became a National Stud in 1872. The visit is worthwhile more for the architecture than the interior, the free visit of the gardens is very pleasant.