The Château of Saint-Maure-de-Touraine, also known as the Château des Rohan, was built during the 15th century in Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine, in Indre-et-Loire. It was founded by Fulk III of Anjou around 990.
The structure was added to the supplementary inventory of historic monuments in 1926. Its entrance tower was listed in 1936.
It currently houses a heritage center.
Geographical context
The château is located in the historic center of Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine, a commune in the arrondissement of Chinon, within the department of Indre-et-Loire in the Centre-Val de Loire region. The former fortress occupies, together with the situated approximately 50 m to the southwest, a circular promontory shaped like a large “mamelon,” surrounded by built-up areas along its slopes.
The promontory on which the château was constructed has relatively level terrain. The château, whose seigneurial residence occupies the highest point, overlooks the valley.
History
Middle Ages
Before the year 1000, around 990, a wooden keep was constructed on the promontory of Sainte-Maure-en-Touraine at the initiative of Fulk III of Anjou. It was later replaced by a stone fortress comparable to those of Langeais or Montbazon.
In 1203, the fortified structure was destroyed. This action was likely carried out by William des Roches on the orders of King John of England. Girard d’Athée, also a vassal of the English king, was tasked with imprisoning individuals who had violated their ban.
In the first half of the 1210s, between 1212 and 1215, Guillaume de Pressigny—identified as Guillaume II in his capacity as “lord of the château and the land of Sainte-Maure,” and as in his capacity as , attested since 1190 and deceased after 1209—rebuilt the château. A supporter of Philip Augustus, he also constructed the Château du Grand-Pressigny. His father-in-law, Guillaume I of Sainte-Maure (born circa 1130–1135, died circa 1205–1209), father of Avoye/Avoise/Hawise, was the heir of the first seigneurial family of Sainte-Maure.1° According to Father Anselme, the first family of Sainte-Maure was established as follows: Goscelin I, active in 1007, died before 1030, had by his wife Aremburge: Gosbert, Guillaume, and Hugues I; the latter married Aénor, daughter of Berlay of Montreuil-Bellay and Adélaïs, daughter of Gilduin/Gelduin the Elder of Saumur, from whom Hugues and Goscelin II were born. Goscelin II, active between 1037 and 1060, married Cassinotte of La Haye; their children were Goscelin III and Hugues (these two brothers were killed—around 1102/1106?—by their own mutinous soldiers at La Haye; Goscelin III supported Foulques V of Anjou against Henry I in the years 1110–1120; another Hugues of Sainte-Maure, probably descended from one of these two brothers, instigated the revolt of Eleanor and her sons against Henry II in 1172), and our Guillaume I of Sainte-Maure (circa 1140–circa 1205/1209), whose daughter Avoye/Avoise married Guillaume de Pressigny (numbered I of Pressigny and II of Sainte-Maure).
2° According to the indexed sites of Hélène & Thierry Bianco (2011): Goscelin/Josselin I (active 1007, 1009) had for sons Josselin II the Poitevin (active between 1032 and before 1060, or possibly after 1078?; married Aremburge), himself father of Josbert (cleric), Guillaume, Bellutia/Bélutea (wife of Aymery/Hémery Payen of Mirebeau and Montbazon?), Jachite, and their elder brother Hugues I. The latter (active circa 1060–circa 1115/1116) married secondly, around 1070/1075, Aénor/Adenorde of Montreuil-Bellay (after a first marriage with a daughter of Jean of Chinon, from whom a first son Guillaume, who died before 1086/93), daughter of Berlay II and Grécie (daughter of Hamelin of Langeais), and granddaughter of Berlay I of Montreuil-Bellay and a daughter of Gilduin the Elder of Saumur. Hugues I and Aénor had: Hugues (II) (married Cassinotte/Cassamota of La Haye; possibly remarried to Jean I of Montbazon?), Pierre (died after 1115), another Guillaume (predeceased before 1100 or 1115), Marquissa/Marquise, Denise/Dionisa/Dionysia (died around 1096; married Josbert of Nouâtre), and Josselin/Goscelin (III) (predeceased around 1102/1106 with his younger brother Hugues (II) in an ambush set by their rebellious soldiers; married Falcabelle). Josselin (III) and Falcabelle were the parents of Hugues II or III (active 1117 to his death circa 1180; he instigated the revolt of Henry and Richard against their father Henry II Plantagenêt; married Aélidis/Avis/Avoise of Montgauger), from whom came Josbert, Josselin/Goscelin (died after 1180), Agathe, Agnès, and our Guillaume I of Sainte-Maure (1130/1135–1205/1209), father of Avoise/Hawise, born around 1155/1165 and died after 1209.
Guillaume de Pressigny and his wife Avoye/Avoise of Sainte-Maure (born circa 1155–1165; married circa 1170–1180) had several children: Hugues, canon of Saint-Martin de Tours and prior of Loches; Aremburge/Aremberge; Garcie; Pétronille; Domitia; and:
Guillaume III or II (died circa 1218–1223 without descendants; known as Guillaume III of Sainte-Maure and Guillaume II of Pressigny) was succeeded by his younger brother Josbert I, born circa 1175–1185 or around 1190 and deceased after 1245. Active between 1223 and 1229, Josbert I was a participant in the crusade of 1229 and held the lordships of Pressigny/Précigny, Sainte-Maure, Nouâtre, and Bridoré. He married Agnès, probably the daughter of . Josbert I and Agnès of Vendôme had the following children: Josbert, chancellor of Saint-Martin of Tours in 1245; Renaud, very likely Marshal , who died in 1270 in Tunisia during Saint Louis’s last crusade and was the ancestor of the Regnault de Précigny family, lords of Laleu and Marans; and their eldest brother: Guillaume IV or III (c. 1215/1225–1271), active from 1230 onward and likely a participant in Louis IX’s crusade in Tunis in 1270, died in 1271. He married Jeanne de Rancon (c. 1220–1302), daughter of Geoffroy IV or V de Rancon and Jeanne Maingot de Surgères, viscountess of Aulnay. Jeanne de Rancon was lady of Marcillac, a Rancon fief comparable to Taillebourg, and the sister of Amable de Rancon, lady of Taillebourg and wife of Guillaume V .
The children of Guillaume IV–III and Jeanne de Rancon de Marcillac were: Pierre (I) (died after 1328), husband of Mahaut/Mathilde (died c. 1328/1334), lord of Montgaugier and ancestor of the Sainte-Maure branch, which later held the titles of and Jonzac, marquises of Nesle and , and ; Isabeau de Sainte-Maure, wife of Philippe de Prie de Buzançais de Montpoupon; and their eldest son:
Guillaume V (or IV), called “the Valet,” was born circa 1235/1245 or around 1250 and died circa 1296/1300. He was active between 1270 and 1274. He married, first in 1270, Isabelle, daughter of Jean I de Berrie d’Amboise, and subsequently, around 1274, Agnès de Pons, widow of . Their son, Guillaume VI–V, also called “the Valet” (born circa 1270/1271 and died circa 1290/1300), is frequently confused with his father, although the historian distinguishes the two. He married around 1288/1290 Alix/Aaliz, daughter of Savary IV de Thouars and Agnès de Pons mentioned above, and he died before 1315. The heiress Isabelle/Isabeau, daughter of Guillaume VI and Aaliz de Thouars (born circa 1285/1290 and died in 1310), held the lordships of Sainte-Maure, Pressigny/Précigny, Nouâtre, Marcillac, Ferrière-Larçon,Ferrière near Beaulieu-lès-Loches, mentioned in earlier versions of this article, does not appear to be involved here: it is the site of a priory founded by and under the authority of the royal castle of Loches (.) and Verneuil-sur-Indre. She transmitted these fiefs to her husband, Amaury III de Craon, whom she married in 1300/1301, and subsequently to their son, Maurice VI or VII de Craon (born circa 1304 and died in 1330).
During the 14th century, Amaury III de Craon (born circa 1280 and died in 1333), then lord of the site, initiated a reconstruction campaign that included the addition of curtain walls and towers to the château’s enclosure. Around 1370, Constable Bertrand du Guesclin is reported to have expelled a group of mercenaries who had occupied the fortress.
The Craon family continued to hold Sainte-Maure. After Amaury IV (1326–30 May 1373), son of Maurice VI–VII de Craon and Marguerite -Saint-Bris, lady of Jarnac, Châteauneuf, and Sainte-Hermine, died without legitimate offspring, the succession passed to his sister . In 1376, ownership then transferred to their niece.
Jeanne de Montbazon, daughter of Renaud, lord of Montbazon, Savonnières, Montsoreau, Villandry/Colombiers, Le Brandon, Marnes, and Moncontour, and of Jeanne (Eleanor) de Craon, the younger sister of Amaury IV and Isabeau de Craon, married in 1372 (ca. 1345–1410; Guillaume VII of Sainte-Maure), viscount of Châteaudun and lord of Marcillac, who was a first cousin of her mother. Through this marriage, Jeanne de Montbazon transmitted to him the lordships of Sainte-Maure, Le Grand-Pressigny, Nouâtre, Ferrière and Verneuil, Jarnac and Châteauneuf-sur-Charente, Montbazon, Savonnières, Montsoreau, Villandry, Le Brandon, Marnes, and Moncontour. Three of Jeanne de Montbazon and Guillaume II de Craon’s children inherited Sainte-Maure. The first was Guillaume III de Craon (Guillaume VIII of Sainte-Maure), viscount of Châteaudun, who died without issue around 1400. He was succeeded by his younger brother Jean de Craon, in 1413, who was killed at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, also without issue. The inheritance then passed to their sister Marguerite de Craon, lady of Sainte-Maure, Nouâtre, Marcillac, Châteauneuf-sur-Charente, Montbazon, and Le Brandon. Other fiefs, including Pressigny, Montsoreau, Villandry/Colombiers, and Jarnac, were transmitted to their younger sister Marie de Craon, who married , .
Marguerite de Craon, born around 1370, married Guy VIII de La Rochefoucauld (c. 1355–c. 1428) in 1395. The estates of Sainte-Maure, Nouâtre, Montbazon, and Le Brandon passed to their younger son Aymar de La Rochefoucauld (died around 1460), who married Jeanne de Martreuil, lady of Hérisson-en-Gâtine. These estates were then successively inherited by three of his children: Jean (died 1465), Françoise (who married Jean de Torcy), and Jeanne de La Rochefoucauld (died around 1500), who married , and bailiff of Touraine. Their daughter Renée du Fou married first Louis III de Rohan-Guémené (died 1498) and then William de La Marck (died 1516). Descendants of her marriage to Louis III de Rohan-Guémené later held the titles of counts (1547, Louis VI) and dukes of Montbazon (1588, Louis VII), retaining the estates of Sainte-Maure, Nouâtre, Le Brandon, and La Haye.
The mid-15th century saw significant reconstruction at the castle. Between 1436 and 1455, Aymar III de La Rochefoucauld constructed polygonal towers, giving the castle its nearly final form.
Modern period During the modern era, up to the French Revolution, the castle was successively held by several noble families, including the , , de La Marck, and Rohan-Guéméné, through inheritance or marriage. Most of the lords of Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine rarely resided in the castle, with the exception of Louis III and Hercule-Mériadec de Rohan-Guéméné, who both died there.
In 1560, King Francis II and his wife, Mary Stuart, stayed at the castle.
In 1605, Philippe Duplessis-Mornay met Henry IV at the castle. In 1619, as part of the peace treaty with her son Louis XIII, Queen Mother Marie de’ Medici traveled to the fortress of Sainte-Maure before proceeding to the Château de Couzières in the parish of Veigné, the official site of the “reconciliation.” On 8 July 1661, Louis XIV, returning from Saint-Jean-de-Luz where he had just signed a treaty, and accompanied by his wife Maria Theresa of Austria, stopped at the Château de Sainte-Maure. During this brief stay, the king granted amnesty to all the prisoners held in the castle’s dungeons.
Contemporary period