Château de Panloy

Guillaume de Ransanne(s) is known as the first lord of Panloy, and written records indicate that subsequently, this title reverted to the Moreaus, who became lords of Panloy from the early 15th century to 1680. Seized and sold, the seigneury changed hands several times, and on July 8, 1760, it constituted the dowry brought by Marie Sarry, lady of the barony of La Chaume de Nancras and Champagne, de la Tour and de Panloy, to Jacques Michel, Baron de Saint-Dizant. He restored the residence, keeping only one entrance pavilion, dating from the old castle which had been built during the Renaissance. Their daughter Anne-Marie married the Marquis de Grailly in 1785, whose descendants are still the owners of the castle. During the Revolution, the Marquise, like other aristocrats whose property, and even lives, were threatened, used the revolutionary divorce law, which allowed her to keep the estate; when her husband was amnestied during the Consulate, he returned in 1802 and they remarried in 1806; since then, the castle has remained in the same family with Louis XV era furniture.

There were two constructions on the estate: an old castle dating from the Renaissance and a more recent one, built in the early 17th century. Of the first, only a few elements remain, such as a cellar and a late Renaissance style pavilion which faces a second, later pavilion, perhaps mid-18th century, whose style was copied from the first. Both are adorned with colonnettes, capitals, coffers sculpted with flowers, lions, and masks. The current castle, restored between 1770 and 1772 by the Baron de Saint-Dizant, is U-shaped. It has a facade facing the Charente and centered by a projection with a triangular pediment sculpted with the family coat of arms. These were added during the significant expansion and embellishment work undertaken around 1870 by the Marquis Gaston de Grailly, who stayed at the castle after spending the winter in his hotel on rue Saint-Hilaire in Poitiers. The two wings are composed of four tall pavilions. The slate roofs are pierced with dormer windows with sculpted pediments added in 1877, at which time the original roof with so-called broken or "Mansard" attics (made of tiles and slates) was removed and rebuilt higher, following the 19th-century fashion. The long terrace with a stone balustrade overlooks the Charente. The castle's dovecote is complete and the best preserved in the department: it is a cylindrical dovecote with 3,000 nesting boxes, with a roof topped by a lantern, signed by the master mason and dated 1620. Given its size and the legislation then in force, it is indicative of an estate extending over more than 1,000 arpents, or one third of a hectare (33 ares) or a "journal" in Saintonge. After initial partial protection in 1983, the entire estate was listed as a Historic Monument in 2021.

The park, designed in the 18th century, was redeveloped in the 19th century and is listed in the pre-inventory of Remarkable Gardens. The main avenue was laid out in the 18th century. There is a hornbeam alley. Near the river, an old garden divided into six squares was surrounded by fishponds. The stables, built around 1870, of impressive dimensions, clearly show the primary function of the castle: a summer and hunting residence; the preserved stalls bear the names of the horses and a large adjoining room was used to store horse-drawn carriages. These stables are now used for equestrian boarding at the castle.

Guided tours of the different rooms of the castle: living rooms, dining room, hunting gallery, bedroom and attics. All rooms are furnished with period and original furniture; visitors can discover unusual objects, witnesses of life in the past, including an 18th-century sedan chair with its two poles, a metal bathtub with a wooden base on wheels from the Louis XV era, a rare early 19th-century coffee maker still in working order, or a carriage trumpet used to signal the arrival of a carriage. The gallery has 150 hunting trophies. Exterior visits: free visit of the stables, dovecote, chapel, laundry, bakery and gardens.

Marquis Gaston de Grailly Isabelle Allard (1944), fashion designer

Resource related to architecture: Mérimée

Château de Panloy - The official website

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