Château de Lupé, Medieval castle in Lupé, France
The Château de Lupé is a fortified castle featuring a distinctive round tower and a series of arched passages surrounding a central courtyard. The layout shows how residential spaces and defensive needs were combined in one structure, with various rooms accessible from the courtyard.
Construction began in the late 12th or early 13th century with a tower house and an enclosure forming a lower courtyard. During the Renaissance period, large windows were added to the interior courtyard, gradually shifting the structure from purely military design to residential use.
The chapel within the courtyard shows traces of its original religious function and gives visitors a sense of how daily life here was shaped by faith. The space remains a quiet corner where people notice the domestic side of castle living rather than just military strength.
Access to the property is from a rural road, and the site is best explored on foot with the courtyard serving as the natural starting point. Visit during daylight hours to appreciate the architectural details and how light fills the different rooms and passageways.
The ground floor contains a rare 16th-century mural showing the castle as it appeared in that era, offering a visual record of its original design before later modifications. This painted image is one of the few surviving records of how the structure looked during its early transformation.
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