17th — 18th centuries

The Veyny, from marquisate
to great château

The marquisate · 1720

A family that prospers

The Veyny prospered throughout the 17th century and distinguished themselves in the army and the Church: Marguerite de Veyny d’Arbouze, first abbess of the Val-de-Grâce, was born at Villemont in 1580. From father to son the Veyny held the office of bailiff of the former county, now duchy, of Montpensier. In 1720 the Regent raised the seigneury of Villemont to a marquisate.

The grand extension · c. 1740

The château of Gilbert de Veyny

In 1740 Villemont belonged to Gilbert de Veyny, « mestre de cavalerie » and builder of the present château — legend has it that, out of favour at the court of Louis XV, he built the immense ensemble we know today to house his regiment.

Following the method advocated by the architect Philibert Delorme for extending and regularising a medieval building, the south façade was enlarged: the main dwelling, freed of its demolished west tower, was lengthened and a tower identical to the surviving east one was built at the far end; a west wing was raised at the rear, matching the existing east wing. The grand outbuildings were then laid out in a horseshoe enclosing a great court of honour; avenues lined with four rows of walnut trees were traced in a star around the château, and the neighbouring marshes were drained by canals.

Villemont stood on marshland: water had to be tamed and channelled, as the plan drawn up by the architect Chambroty in 1757 clearly shows. The surroundings were planted with hemp, and bridle paths stretched all around, as the Cassini map records.

18th-century elevation of the château: main building, court of honour and outbuildings
« Élévation du château de Villemont », drawn by Jean Chambroty, the master builder from Aigueperse in charge of Gilbert de Veyny’s extension (mid-18th century)
Plan of the Villemont estate by Jean Chambroty: the château at the centre of a star of avenues, the parterres to the north and the canal
Plan of the estate by Jean Chambroty, 1757: the château at the heart of a star of avenues, four formal parterres to the north around a pool, down to the canalised Toulaine. Whether the project was ever carried out is unknown
Plan comparing the 16th-century château with its 18th-century extensions
The 16th-century château compared with the 18th-century one
Bird's-eye drawing of the château and its outbuildings
Drawn view of the whole
Sources and further reading
  • Sabine Codet, « Le château de Villemont », Bulletin monumental, vol. 127, no. 2, 1969, p. 157 (read on Persée).
  • Jean Chambroty, master builder in Aigueperse: elevation of the château and plan of the estate (1757), reproduced above.
  • French Ministry of Culture, Mérimée database, record PA00092456 « Château de Villemont » (view).