Château de Sauveterre, Castle in Sauveterre, France

The Château de Sauveterre is a fortified complex whose main Renaissance building, about forty metres long, is flanked by two towers on the outer facade. A crenellated cornice supports the roof, and a small tower of the older castle has been converted into a dovecote in the park. The former castle chapel, now the parish church of Sainte-Croix, adjoins the building and keeps a doorway into the castle.

A castle was burned during the Albigensian Crusade in the early 13th century; monks then founded a sauveté settlement that gave the place its name. In 1452 ruined owners sold the site as it stood to the Auxilhon family, whose descendants still own it. The present building dates from the 16th century and was damaged in the Wars of Religion and the Revolution, then restored between 1818 and 1825 by the architect Bernard Charles.

The castle's name comes from the sauveté, a refuge settlement founded by monks that gave the village its name. The Auxilhon family, descendants of a knight who fought at Bouvines in 1214, still owns the site. The former castle chapel, now the parish church of Sainte-Croix, holds the tombs of many Auxilhon family members and retains a passage into the castle.

The castle stands in the village of Sauveterre, in the Tarn department, not in Agenais. The building is private and still occupied by the Auxilhon descendants, so visits are not open by default; ask in the village about access. The former castle chapel, now the parish church of Sainte-Croix, keeps a doorway into the castle and holds the Auxilhon tombs.

The Auxilhon family, descended from a knight who fought at Bouvines in 1214, bought the ruined site in 1452 and still owns the castle. The former castle chapel, now the parish church of Sainte-Croix, is attached to the building and holds the tombs of many family members.