Château de Noüe, Villers-Cotterêts, French Renaissance castle in Villers-Cotterêts, France.
Château de Noüe is a Renaissance castle built from pale limestone that rises in Villers-Cotterêts with a square floor plan. The structure features multiple roof sections of varying shapes, including polygonal and gabled areas, along with wooden staircases inside that connect the different levels.
The castle was built in the 15th century and received major additions during the 16th century, including a gatehouse structure referred to as a dungeon. This period of expansion shows how the owners enlarged and updated the property to reflect their growing importance.
The castle carries the name of a family that held power in the region for generations, and their influence shows in how the building was designed and expanded. Walking through the grounds, you can see how different parts were added at different times, reflecting the family's growing wealth and status.
The castle sits on Rue de Plaisance in Villers-Cotterêts, a town in the Aisne department of the Hauts-de-France region. To see it well, walk around the grounds slowly and view the rooflines and stonework from different angles to appreciate how the building was constructed.
A 16th-century limestone dovecote sits on the grounds and was once connected to a farm that depended on the castle estate for its survival. This outbuilding reveals how grand properties once functioned as small economic systems with multiple working parts.
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