Château de Rochetaillée, Listed medieval castle in Saint-Étienne, France

The Château de Rochetaillée is a listed medieval castle set on a hilltop in the Rochetaillée district of Saint-Étienne, France. The site consists of stone walls and three remaining towers that rise along a ridge at around 2,460 feet (750 meters) above sea level.

The castle's construction date is unknown, but it appears in written records by 1173, when a land exchange between the Count of Forez and the Church of Lyon required whoever held Rochetaillée to pay homage and loyalty to the count. Additions were made in the 16th century, and the castle was listed as a monument historique on 5 April 1930.

The Château de Rochetaillée sits on a ridge above the village, and three of its original four towers are still standing today. Walking around them gives a clear sense of how a medieval defensive structure was laid out on a hilltop.

The castle sits on a rock outcrop that makes it inaccessible from the north, so visitors approach from the other sides. A modern metal walkway with pale grey railings and wooden stairs zigzags up the rock face between the towers. A stone cross on a stepped base stands on the rock below the left tower.

The castle stands exactly on the European watershed, meaning rainwater falling on one side of its walls eventually drains toward the Atlantic, while water on the other side heads to the Mediterranean. A short distance away, the Gouffre d'Enfer dam, built in 1866, is one of the earliest arch dams in France.