Château de Thibault de Termes
Encyclopedia
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- Alternative name: Château d' Armagnac. Not to be confused with Château de TermesChâteau de TermesThe Château de Termes is a ruined castle near the village of Termes in the Aude département of France. It is one of the so-called Cathar castles.-History:...
in AudeAudeAude is a department in south-central France named after the river Aude. The local council also calls the department "Cathar Country".Aude is also a frequent feminine French given name in Francophone countries, deriving initially from Aude or Oda, a wife of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine, and mother...
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- Alternative name: Château d' Armagnac. Not to be confused with Château de Termes
The Château de Thibault de Termes was a medieval 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 French town of Termes-d'Armagnac
Termes-d'Armagnac
Termes-d'Armagnac is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France.-Population:-Personalities:*Thibault d'Armagnac, born in the castle in 1405, companion of Joan of Arc, bailiff Chartres of 1432 to 1457, and died in 1457.-References:*...
, in the Gers
Gers
The Gers is a department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in the southwest of France named after the Gers River.Inhabitants are called les Gersois or Gersoises.-History:...
département. The keep (La Tour de Termes-d'Armagnac) is the only vestige.
Construction of the castle dates from the end of the 13th century and start of the 14th century for Jean, Count of Armagnac
Armagnac (region)
The hilly countship of Armagnac , in the foothills of the Pyrenées between the Adour and Garonne rivers, is a historic countship of the Duchy of Gascony, established in 601 in Aquitaine...
. The keep
Keep
A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word keep, but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residences, used as a refuge of last resort should the rest of the...
is 36 m (~118 ft) high and includes six levels. Strategically built on a hill which dominates the valleys of the Adour
Adour
The Adour is a river in southwestern France. It rises in High-Bigorre , at the Col du Tourmalet, and flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Bayonne. It is long, of which the uppermost as the Adour du Tourmalet. At its final stretch, i.e...
and the Arros
Arros
-River:* The Arros River, one of the main tributaries of the Adour, in the Southwest of France-Communes:* Arros-de-Nay, a commune of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department* Asasp-Arros, a commune of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department...
, it allowed the d'Armagnac fanily to keep watch over the frontiers of the province of Armagnac. Its most famous inhabitant was the founder's son, Thibault d'Armagnac, companion of Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc
Saint Joan of Arc, nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" , is a national heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. A peasant girl born in eastern France who claimed divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the...
. He gave evidence on her behalf at her trial.
Classed 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...
(historic monument) in 1960, the tower houses a museum of Gascon
Gascony
Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; sometimes they are considered to overlap, and sometimes Gascony is considered a...
life with exhibits on regional history and culture.
The Tower of Termes d'Armagnac also belonged to the family Boingnères in particular to André Boingnères who donated the Tower in the 1960s, so that this historic important heritage can be opened to all, an objective innovating for time .