An emblematic, listed, 14th century Gascony castle, with a French formal garden, dominating the Loma

Property summary

An emblematic, listed, 14th century Gascony castle, with a French formal garden, dominating the Lomange countryside.
A small village, barely an hour from Toulouse and but 10 minutes from Lectoure (with its market as well as all shops and amenities), is to be found at the foot of an old fortified town, the heights of which ever featuring a castle whose original function was defensive. Local peace seemingly now attained, the tranquillity of the premises has naturally modified the building's original military vocation. The panoramic view on offer from near the castle is captivating courtesy of the pleasant feeling resulting from the sight of valleys, streams and a kaleidoscope of fields and copses stretching for as far as the eye can see.
The village is reached via narrow, minor roads, turnings off other, scarcely bigger roads, giving the impression of being isolated and yet everything is within easy reach.
Near the castle, the eye is initially drawn not only by a good quality construction, made of slightly uneven white stone, but also by a row of cypress trees bordering a little French garden, along a narrow street, with healthy boxwood waiting to see what the future might bring. The finishing touches that sometimes approach ostentation, like those to be found on the buildings in the Touraine and Anjou regions, are absent here. Instead, these buildings reflect a much simpler quality, particular to Gascony, which is based on the intelligent use of well-proven techniques used for a clearly defined function. Soberness, effectiveness and solidity do not, however, exclude an attention to appearance, the latter slowly revealing itself over the years with in-depth familiarity. Resulting in the idea that each object reaching such a level of simplicity can but satisfy the spirit and the senses.
The building's robust appearance, with seemingly small, and yet cleverly positioned openings, sized to limit the seasonal effects of the sun's rays, could easily mislead visitors into thinking it austere, it is not.
A village-size garden, planted with decoratively trimmed boxwood and cypress trees, harmoniously enhances the premises and gives the castle a stately, but private air.

The castleDating from the first half of the 14th century, this castle bears last witness to the standard Gascony castle that existed in a region much attached to the art of 'Trovar', a magnificent expression of poetic art in the Occitan language, propagated throughout the world by the famous troubadours. A Gascony castle was initially a plain tower or keep, known as 'sala'. 3 or 4 stories high, it was used as living space as well as for defensive purposes. The first level, generally intended for storing food and as a wine storehouse, had a packed mud floor, as is still the case here. The rock on which it was constructed provided a mechanical stability and prevented rising damp. The building had, above all, to be sound.

The long facades face south-west and north-east, which is fairly traditional, the biggest openings very often being on the north-east and south-east sides. In this instance, the building layout meets two axes of symmetry, just like that of Avézan castle. One is based on the median longitudinal axis represented by a load-bearing wall the other, on a diagonal axis, by the presence of a tower at each end, one of these two towers acting as a keep. The roofs are always hipped and covered with Roman tiles. The facing is limestone, sometimes mixed with sandstone features, particularly in wrought sections.

Changes have been made over the years, such as the opening of windows, making them bigger and more numerous, a little loophole sometimes becoming an elegant mullioned window. Then, some of these openings were condemned - such is not the case here - and it is often difficult to accurately identify the initial section and the ...