Château de Laroque, Medieval castle in Laroque, France

Château de Laroque is a fortress above the village of Laroque, in the Hérault. Its pentagonal keep, cut down to 27 metres, rises behind trees and neighbouring buildings; a lower stone wing with a pitched roof adjoins it, and a narrow turret with a pointed roof stands to its right. The keep's upper section is reworked in bossage stone.

The castle is a stronghold of the 11th and 12th centuries, built as a watch post controlling access to the Hérault valley above the village of Laroque. Its pentagonal keep once stood nearly 36 metres high; after the Wars of Rohan it was truncated on Richelieu's orders and now measures 27 metres. The access stairway, facades, roofs and former castle chapel were inscribed as monuments historiques by decree of 22 January 1979.

The castle's name comes from the La Roque family, co-lords of Laroque, whose coat of arms is still carved in stone among the arcades of the seigneurial residence. In a neighbouring courtyard stands the old stone baptismal font from the castle chapel, moved out of the building it once served.

The castle stands above the village of Laroque, in the Hérault department; the keep reaches 27 metres after its truncation. The access staircase, facades, roofs and former castle chapel have been listed as monuments historiques since the arrêté of 22 January 1979. The site is reached on foot through the village, and the ground around the medieval buildings is uneven.

The keep was cut down from nearly 36 metres to its present 27 metres on Richelieu's orders after the Wars of Rohan. The reworked upper section is laid in bossage stones, which a visitor can pick out against the older masonry below. A bell offered in 1630 by Bertrand de Saussan, co-lord of Laroque, still hangs at the top and long rang the clock.