Château d'Harcourt

Although the lords of Harcourt trace their origins to the year 1000, it is only in the second half of the 12th century that the existence of a castle can be proven from historical texts.

In 1338, King Philip VI, set up the seigniory of Harcourt, with the Château d'Harcourt forming its principal town.

In the 17th century, the castle lost all military interest; it was then partially abandoned and invaded by vegetation after Louis Gervais Delamarre acquired it in 1802.

Ahead of the curtain wall, a deep ditch, dry most of the time (lacking a river to feed it), girdled the structure.

In the 17th century, Marie Françoise de Brancas (d.1715), wife of Alphonse Henri, Count of Harcourt, undertook to refit the medieval fortress to make it more hospitable.

The medieval Château d'Harcourt appears truncated today, especially as the top of the keep was levelled to bring it to the same height as the other buildings.