Château de l'Oisellerie, Castle in La Couronne, Charente, France

The Château de l'Oisellerie in La Couronne consists of a west wing begun in 1498, with a steep roof of flat tiles and a square turret holding a spiral staircase, later topped with crenellations. A square pavilion joins it to the large north wing, cylindrical tower and rectangular pavilion of the third quarter of the 16th century, linked by a gallery built around 1600. The entrance portal has a pedestrian door and a mounted door beneath merlons and battlements.

In 1267 the Count of Angoulême ceded the estate to the Abbey of La Couronne; its name may come from a falconry on the abbey's land. Construction began in 1498 under Arnauld Calluaud, an Angoulême alderman, with money from his brother Jean VI, commendatory abbot of La Couronne. Jean, later bishop of Senlis, enlarged the castle with a new wing and the round tower. Francis I stayed in 1526 and broke an arm hunting deer. The Calluaud sold it in 1678; the Maulde family held it for two centuries.

The name l'Oisellerie is said to come from a falconry (oisellerie) kept on this fief of the Abbey of La Couronne, halfway between the abbey and the forest of the Monks. Francis I stayed here in 1526 and broke an arm during a stag hunt. Since 1989 the castle has belonged to the departmental council, which installed the Centre départemental de documentation pédagogique and a multimedia library.

The château stands in the commune of La Couronne, a few kilometres south-east of Angoulême in Charente. Since 1989 it has belonged to the Conseil général, which installed the Charente Centre départemental de documentation pédagogique there; the agricultural lycée of Oisellerie also occupies the site. The grounds are used for education, so visitors should ask the centre in advance about access to the courtyard and the listed façades.

The name l'Oisellerie is thought to come from a falconry once kept on this fief of La Couronne Abbey, which lay halfway between the abbey and the Forest of the Monks. The entrance gate has a pedestrian door and a mounted door topped with battlements and crenellations.