Château de la Bâtisse, Medieval castle in Chanonat, France.

Château de la Bâtisse is a castle complex of pale rendered walls and terracotta-tiled roofs in the Auzon valley at Chanonat. A round tower with a conical roof joins a two-storey wing, with a round turret and a square tower projecting from the front; a taller round tower and a lantern-topped tower stand at the corners of a second wing. Below, a stone retaining wall carries a terrace with an arched gateway.

A defence tower was built at La Bâtisse in the 13th century, guarding the lower Auzon valley alongside the Château du Crest. In the 14th century three more towers were added and linked by buildings to form a fortified castle. In 1622 Richelieu had its walls and one tower demolished and the machicolations and battlements removed; around 1633 Claude Roussel capped the towers with lantern cupolas. In 1693 it was restored as a pleasure residence with terraced gardens.

The name "la Bâtisse" refers to the building itself, a fortified house rather than a court residence. Claude Roussel, lord from 1622, capped the surviving towers with lantern cupolas around 1633, giving the castle its present silhouette; the central bell turret was added in the 19th century.

Visitors should expect to explore the grounds mostly on foot, so comfortable shoes are important. The best time to visit is spring or early autumn, when the weather is pleasant and the gardens are at their best.

The gardens cover 9 hectares and were laid out by the school of André Le Nôtre; they are the largest formal gardens in the Puy-de-Dôme and are listed as a Jardin remarquable. A dam diverts water from the Auzon into a canal that feeds a water tower above the property, and the basins are filled by gravity. The estate runs along 1,800 m of the Auzon, and La Bâtisse is the only true water garden in the Massif central.