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Guédelon Castle

PLet's go to neighbouring Burgundy, not far from L'Echappée Belle, where the Guédelon castle is located, a real open-air laboratory.

It is a kind of educational site.
The motto of Guédelon is "build to understand".

You will therefore understand how castles and surrounding buildings were built using the techniques of the 13th century builders.
Guédelon has chosen to build using the same techniques since more than twenty years now.

It is in the heart of an iron sandstone quarry typical of the Puisaye region that this adventure began in 1997. This site is also surrounded by forest, which makes it possible to obtain the raw materials necessary for the construction of such a building. In the 13th century, the means of transport were not the same as today and the transport of wood and stones was very costly.

Year after year, we can see the evolution of the Guédelon site and admire the work of wood, stone and all the materials used at the time.
And in particular clay, because this is a potter's land. This was used to make tiles, but also roof tiles.

At Guédelon, we forget the progress of the last eight centuries and we go back in time to the Middle Ages, when castles were built by men without cranes, but with "squirrel cages" that work with the strength of legs and arms.

Here we take the time to make progress on this site as long as we respect the ancestral methods.

To give you an idea, it took two seasons to build the chapel.

Along the way, you will see demonstrations of tool forging, stone cutting, tile making and rope making with materials extracted on site. You can also visit the garden with the medicinal plants known and used at the time, as well as the orchard and vegetable garden, whose products you can taste in the site's restaurant.

The seigneurial dwelling is finished, the castle is well advanced but new projects promise a bright future for this architectural ensemble with the construction of the village and the medieval church.

Do you know...?

- Guédelon receives more than 300,000 visitors a year. That's as many as the castles of Amboise, Cheverny, Villandry...

- If you would like to learn more about the techniques demonstrated during your visit, Guédelon offers various courses such as stone cutting. These courses run from Thursday to the weekend over 3 or 4 days.

- Guédelon is the fictitious property of Guilbert Courtenay, known as Guilbert de Guédelon, a low-ranking lord, vassal of Jean de Toucy, himself a vassal of the King of France.

If you are with your four-legged friend, he is welcome on the site, kept on a leash.

And if you want to extend the discovery of local crafts, go to Saint-Amand en Puisaye where you can admire the local pottery, especially during the pottery festival which takes place over two days at the end of June.

Website of Guédelon