Château de Saint-Izaire
Encyclopedia
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
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 of Saint-Izaire
Saint-Izaire
Saint-Izaire is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France.The Château de Saint-Izaire is a 14th century episcopal castle.-Population:-References:*...
in the Aveyron
Aveyron
Aveyron is a département in southern France named after the Aveyron River.- History :Aveyron is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790....
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...
. Since 1991 it has been classified as a historical monument
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...
. It is maintained by an association known as Vie et Château (Life and Castle), who have created a mini museum on the premises to record the history of the castle and the inhabitants of the village of Saint-Izaire.
The Château de Saint-Izaire is one of a group of 23 castles in Aveyron who have joined together to provide a tourist itinerary as the Route des Seigneurs du Rouergue
Route des Seigneurs du Rouergue
The Route des Seigneurs du Rouergue is a tourist itinerary established in the Aveyron département of France, grouping together 23 separate sites in the former province of Rouergue...
.
Architecture
The castle is a massive quadrangular red stone building that shelters the town hall of the village of Saint-Izaire. The structure is supported by a keep-tower in the southern wing (partially demolished since the 19th century). This keep contains mural frescoFresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
es dating from the 14th century, and the ceiling in the room of the bishops in the Baroque style of the 17th century.
The castle was built by Guillaume Rotlindes, ancestor of the current Rollinde de Beaumont. It was intended as a gift to the Abbey of Vabres, close to the commune of Saint-Affrique
Saint-Affrique
Saint-Affrique is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France.-History:Saint-Affrique grew in the 6th century around the tomb of St. Africain, bishop of Comminges. In the 12th century a fortress was built on the neighboring rock of Caylus. The possession of Saint-Affrique was vigorously...
: the deed attesting the gift is preserved to the present day. The castle was often used as a summer residence by the abbey. When the cathedral and palace of Vabres
Vabres
Vabres is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:* Vabres, Cantal* Vabres, Gard* Vabres, former commune of the Haute-Loire department, now part of Alleyras* Vabres-l'Abbaye, in the Aveyron department* Vabre, in the Tarn department...
were razed in the wars of religion
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
, the castle was used by refugees from the abbey.