Château de Maubourg, Heritage castle in Saint-Maurice-de-Lignon, France

Château de Maubourg consists of four connected wings surrounding a rectangular courtyard, with a grand entrance staircase on its western facade. The estate spreads across 34 hectares of parkland enclosed by stone walls, protecting facades, a chapel, library, and historical rooms.

The Maubourg estate was the seat of a barony of the diocese of Velay from the 16th century, held first by the Malet family and then by the Faÿ de La Tour-Maubourg. The medieval castle, whose oldest of three towers may date to the 11th century, was destroyed during the Revolution. The present château was built in the early 19th century at the instigation of Charles-César de Faÿ de La Tour-Maubourg.

The name Maubourg comes from the barony held by the Malet family in the Middle Ages, then by the Faÿ de La Tour-Maubourg from the 16th century. Marguerite Malet de la Tour, heiress of Maubourg, married her cousin Christophe de Faÿ in 1527; the Sainte-Marguerite chapel, rebuilt in the mid-19th century northwest of the commune, recalls the miracle attributed to her and became a pilgrimage site.

The main entrance opens onto a short remnant of an old road that once linked Retournac on the Loire to Saint-Pierre-de-Bœuf on the Rhône. The 34-hectare grounds, with their large and small parks, are enclosed by a stone wall; the small park follows plans by an English landscape designer of the early 19th century. The castle, tower, ice house and orangery are listed monuments, so expect guided visits rather than free roaming.

The estate's ice house is a rare survival in this part of France: a vaulted structure for storing winter ice, listed with the castle, tower and orangery as monuments historiques in 2007. The small park was laid out to plans by an English landscape gardener in the early 19th century.