Château de Lucens

The former episcopal castle was built in the 13th century in a strategically excellent location on the rocky spur between the Vallon des Vaux and the Broye Valley northwest of the village. Major alterations and extensions took place in the mid-16th century when the castle was chosen as the seat of the bailiwick. The oldest parts dating from the Middle Ages are the 26m high round keep (13th century) in Savoyard style and its adjacent buildings and walls. The irregular palace with oriel turrets and a double curtain wall was built during the Bernese period. The castle passed into the possession of the canton in 1798, but was sold by it in 1803 and has changed hands several times since.

The most famous owner was certainly Sir Adrian Conan Doyle, the son of the writer Arthur Conan Doyle. On his initiative, the Sherlock Holmes Museum was established in the castle in 1965. After the death of Sir Adrian Conan Doyle (1970), the castle changed hands again. Today (2005) it is no longer accessible to the public. The Sherlock Holmes Museum was moved to the Maison Rouge in the village.

At the ascent to the castle stands the Gothic castle chapel Sainte-Agnès, which was built in the 14th century under episcopal supervision. It contains 15th-century murals in the choir; the stained glass windows were created in 1952 by J. Prahin. In the old town center, some stately bourgeois and farmhouses from the 17th to 19th centuries have been preserved.