The history of Château de La Côte

From a fortified mansion to a Renaissance castle…

"The topographical location of Château de la Cote leaves no doubt about its origins. Very early on, a castle motte was transformed into a fortified house and then into a manor with ramparts forming a quadrilateral in the 15th century by Lord Arnald de Laudibus, a native of Béarn and Armagnac. In 1498 an act attests to the castral chapel" (P. Mazière)

The fortified manor goes through the Hundred Years War, settles during the Renaissance under the protective wing of the castle of Bourdeilles on which it depends. A cartouche painted by the painters of Fontainebleau in the golden salon testifies to this. The Du Lau family will keep the land and the castle of La Coste for nearly four centuries.

In 1738, the future Archbishop of Arles was born at the Château de La Côte, who fell under the pikes of the Federals of the Carmelite Revolution in 1792 and was beatified by Pope Pius XI in 1926.

A "forgotten" castle crumbling under the weight of the ages...

In 1847 the chateau was dilapidated, almost abandoned by his Parisian heirs. An inventory drawn up then leaves no doubt about the fate reserved for it: it will be sold.

In 1867 the Marquis du Lau sold the 600-hectare estate to the honorable Déthan family, who undertook the restoration of the castle and the agricultural buildings at great expense.

The Renaissance castle then gave way to a vast, remodeled and rejuvenated residence: removal of the ramparts and the closed courtyard, large openings with mullioned windows to the south and east, a grand staircase opening onto a sunny courtyard.

Towards a renewal…

From 1868, Jean Edouard Dethan, a former merchant keen on agriculture, embarked on the modernization of farming and planted pines and vines. He died in 1869 without seeing the result of his modernization efforts. Her son Georges is 9 years old. He will take up the torch and exhibit his work at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1900. The Parisian jury will honor him and award him the Cross of Knight of the Legion of Honor. After his death in 1942, the heirs decided to part with the land and the castle.

In 1956 the estate was bought by Michel and Régine Guillaume, who during their honeymoon fell under the spell of the house lost in the Périgord countryside. Everything needs to be done or redone, from the buildings to the roofs.

For twenty years under the wise rule of Mr. Guillaume, ITPA engineer, originally from the great plains of Champagne, the property will resume its vocation of agriculture and breeding: but times change....

The castle becomes a beautiful hotel restaurant...

The castle was transformed into a hotel restaurant in 1989: what was a noble house then became a welcoming residence, with fourteen rooms and suites.

The current owners, Michel and Olivier Guillaume, are committed to offering their visitors today the charm and refinement of old French residences combined with modern comfort.

Catherine LAURENT