Château d'Ansouis, Medieval castle in Ansouis, France

The Château d'Ansouis is a quadrangular complex with corner towers from the 11th and 12th centuries and a fortified gate on its south side. Its four storeys follow the uneven levels of the rock, and the severe outer walls are typical of feudal architecture in the Midi. Behind the bossed portal with the Sabran coat of arms, a Renaissance staircase leads to more than 50 rooms, including the medieval kitchen, the keep and the chapel.

A castle at Ansouis is first documented in 960, when it belonged to the counts of Forcalquier and consisted of a stone keep; Roman remains show an earlier fortification on the site. In 1178 Garsinde de Forcalquier married Raymond I de Sabran, bringing the castle to the Sabran family. Destroyed by the Grandes Compagnies in 1358, it was rebuilt, taken by Huguenots in 1574 and 1585, then rebuilt as a residence in the 17th and 18th centuries.

The rooms inside display period furniture and objects that reflect how the aristocracy lived during the Age of Enlightenment in Provence. These pieces offer a direct view of the everyday world of this social class.

Tours take place on weekends from April to October, with two sessions daily during summer months. Advance reservations are needed and payment is only accepted in cash or by check.

A four-kilometre Roman-era aqueduct still supplies the château with water; excavations showed a fortification already stood here in Roman times, called castrum de Ansoissis. The 11.8-hectare estate also holds a 220-metre cypress avenue and a 42 × 11 metre basin, two metres deep, for 18th-century water games.