Château de Chevannes, Medieval castle in Saint-Racho, France.
Château de Chevannes is a former fortified house in Saint-Racho, built at the end of the 16th century on a U-shaped plan around a cour d'honneur. The rectangular main building is flanked by two round towers with pepper-pot roofs. Two wings at right angles to the east facade house outbuildings: the south wing has two superimposed open galleries, the north wing contains a barn, stables and a bread oven. The north-east wing and towers were razed after the Revolution.
Founded in 1180, the fortified house passed to Jehan de Syon in 1308, then to the Gachet and Mouchet families; in 1478 the seigneurie belonged to Antoine Gachet. The present castle was built at the end of the 16th century. During the Revolution it was partly destroyed and turned into a farm; the north-east wing and towers were razed. In 1970 Colette Du Barry, marquise Bernard de Noblet d'Anglure, bought it and began restoring it.
The name Chevannes (also written Chavannes) has designated the seigneurie since at least 1478, when it belonged to Antoine Gachet. The south wing is formed of two open galleries stacked one above the other, while the north wing holds a barn, stables and a bread oven. The building served as a farm after the Revolution.
The castle stands at the bottom of the valley where the Sornin and Bief meet, in the commune of Saint-Racho. Only the facades and roofs are protected under the 1977 listing, so the interior is not covered by that designation. The building is private property; the U-shaped plan and the two round towers are best seen from the courtyard side.
The fortified house originally stood on a quadrangular plan ringed by moats; after the Revolution the north-east wing and the towers were razed, which is why the present layout is open on that side. The surviving south wing keeps two stacked open galleries.
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