Bannegon Castle

Bannegon Castle - Château de Bannegon, Bannegon, Cher, Center - Loire Valley, French Republic.

The Château de Bannegon is located in the commune of Bannegon, in the Cher department of France.
It is entirely surrounded by moats fed by the Auron River. Bannegon was built on a defensive site that had already been established by the 11th century.
The castle has a polygonal layout and is enclosed by a curtain wall. A large tower, known as the "Barres" tower, dates back to the 13th or early 14th century and features a chimney 9.5 meters in height.
Around the year 1000, the castle belonged to the Port family, and later, in the 14th century, to the Barres family. The original castle dates to the 12th century. In 1552, Bussy-Rabutin captured it on behalf of the King. Having been partially destroyed in the 16th century, it was subsequently rebuilt in the early Renaissance style.
Marie de Brabançois, the then-Lady of Bannegon, supported the Reformation and held the castle during a fifteen-day siege led by de Monteret, the governor of Bourbonnais.
Restored in the late 19th century, the castle has retained its medieval appearance. It has been classified as a historical monument since 1936.
The current owners inherited the castle in 1988 and established an association, "Bannegon Millennium," dedicated to its restoration. In 1996, they launched the "Medieval Bannegon" event, which takes place annually over the weekend closest to August 15th. The castle is also available for rent for various events and as a place to stay.