Bazoches Castle

Bazoches Castle - Château de Bazoches, Bazoches, Nievre, Burgundy-Franche-Comte, French Republic.

The Château de Bazoches was built in the 12th century on a commanding height overlooking the plains. It is located in the Nièvre department in Burgundy and offers a view of the commune of Vézelay. The town of Bazoches is an ancient Roman settlement; not far from here, near Alesia, Caesar’s army fought against the rebelling Gauls, who were led by Vercingetorix.
The château was constructed by a certain Jean de Bazoches; it features a trapezoidal layout with round towers and a rectangular main building. In the 17th century, the Château de Bazoches became the residence of Marshal Vauban—the preeminent military engineer of his time.
Vauban acquired the Château de Bazoches in 1675, using the reward he received from the King for his capture of the Dutch city of Maastricht—an achievement accomplished in just 13 days thanks to a new siege system he had devised. Shortly thereafter, the locality of Bazoches was granted the status of a county.
Today, the château belongs to Arnaud de Sigalas and his wife, a descendant of Vauban. Arnaud himself has Russian roots: his maternal grandmother was a member of the Lomonosov family, and his mother was born in St. Petersburg. To honor their ancestor, the renowned Vauban, Arnaud and his son Amaury restored the Château de Bazoches and opened it to the public.