Château de Cordès, Medieval castle in Orcival, France

Château de Cordès stands at 900 m altitude above the Sioulet in Orcival, Puy-de-Dôme. Its rough grey and tan masonry is framed by smooth grey quoins: a tall rectangular keep with a steep slate pyramid roof and corner turrets, flanked by two round towers with conical slate roofs, and a lower hipped-roof wing with a chimney joining a square tower. The Sioulet facade carries machicolations.

The site is documented from 1268, when it belonged to the Chalus family, who held it until selling to Emmanuel d'Allègre in 1659. His son Yves d'Alègre, marshal of France in 1724, remodelled the 15th-century fortification into a residence and in 1695 had the gardens laid out by Le Nôtre's workshop. The château was classified as a monument historique on 20 November 1933.

The château's name comes from the Chalus family, who held the site from 1268; the Alègre family, buyers in 1659, gave the sculpted tomb of Yves II d'Allègre, companion of Bayard, now inside. The ground floor holds a 16th-century Carrara marble altarpiece and a Louis XV salon with 18th-century plasterwork. Paul Bourget set his 1914 novel Le Démon de midi here, calling it Soléac.

The castle is located about 30 minutes from Clermont-Ferrand and is best visited by arranging a tour in advance with the property management. It helps to contact ahead to confirm access times and what you can see during your visit.

A five-meter-high corridor of hornbeam trees leads to the entrance, where two formal gardens feature water basins and a labyrinth with roses at its center. This garden design creates an intentional path through the grounds.