The Château des Milandes is a small castle

Castle

A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...

 in the commune

Communes of France

The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...

of Castelnaud-la-Chapelle

Castelnaud-la-Chapelle

Castelnaud-la-Chapelle is a commune in the Dordogne department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.The Château de Castelnaud-la-Chapelle is located in the commune.-Geography:...

 in the Dordogne

Dordogne

Dordogne is a départment in south-west France. The départment is located in the region of Aquitaine, between the Loire valley and the High Pyrénées named after the great river Dordogne that runs through it...

 département of France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. Built around 1489, it was the main house of the lords of Caumont until 1535, who preferred to live in this manor house

Manor house

A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...

 instead of the large, uncomfortable medieval castle of Château de Castelnaud-la-Chapelle

Château de Castelnaud-la-Chapelle

The Château de Castelnaud is a medieval fortress in the commune of Castelnaud-la-Chapelle, overlooking the Dordogne River in Périgord, southern France. It was erected to face its rival, the Château de Beynac.-History:...

.

In 1940, the entertainer Josephine Baker

Josephine Baker

Josephine Baker was an American dancer, singer, and actress who found fame in her adopted homeland of France. She was given such nicknames as the "Bronze Venus", the "Black Pearl", and the "Créole Goddess"....

 rented the château and then bought it in 1947.

It has been listed as a monument historique

Monument historique

A monument historique is a National Heritage Site of France. It also refers to a state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building or a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, or gardens, bridges, and other structures, because of their...

by the French Ministry of Culture since 1986.

External links

• Milandes Official site
• Ministry of Culture listing for Château des Milandes
• France Direct Château des Milandes (Josephine Baker's "Village of the World")