THE CASTLE

Turenne, the seat of the Viscounty, ruled, independently until its takeover by Louis XV in 1738, over a large region that extended from the Xaintrie to the Périgord and the Bas-Limousin, encompassing 1200 villages and eleven parishes. The castle, adorned with its two towers, still stands proudly on its rock and its motte castrale where beautiful residences occupied by rich merchants are clustered. You will be able to evaluate its size by visiting the guard room of the XIVth century, then by taking advantage of the splendid sight on the valley after having climbed the small stone staircase of the Tower of Caesar, old watchtower built in the XIIth century with walls of 2,5 m thickness. The terrace is equipped with an orientation table. Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, co-religionist and companion in arms of King Henri IV, transformed the viscounty into a bastion of Protestantism. In the 17th century, Henri, nicknamed "the great Turenne", became famous and was made marshal of the camps and armies of the king by Louis XIV. In 1738, Charles-Godefroy, the last of the viscounts of the La Tour d'Auvergne family, multiplied his gambling debts. Louis XV agreed to purge them in exchange for the viscounty whose inhabitants had to pay taxes immediately. A visit in total immersion in this part of the history of Corrèze!