The Gascon style architecture of Château de Plieux

Located in Plieux in the Gers, the Château de Plieux is a castle of the Gascon type built in 1340. It was constructed by the Faudoas family on the site of a castrum or a motte castrale and was classified as a historical monument in 1994. The structure consists of a rectangular central body and two square towers on opposite corners.

The names of the towers refer to the villages with which they were likely in visual contact. The Tour Sainte-Mère stands 26 meters high and probably served as an entrance to the village through two doors, one of which was later walled up. The Tour Saint-Clar was leveled at the level of the main body at an unknown date. During the late Middle Ages or the Renaissance, the castle was remodeled to include many windows that opened views of the countryside and the Pyrenees, though this may have led to the disappearance of the walkway and machicolations on the top of the walls.

The presence of machicolations on three sides of the building reflects a late construction and the final evolution of the Gascon castle. Throughout history, the building was owned by several families including the Faudoas, Galard de L'Isle-Bouzon, Poubersac, and Rochechouart. It served a primarily military function and rarely acted as a permanent residence. Today, the writer Renaud Camus lives in the castle and has turned it into a center for contemporary art exhibitions, notably showcasing works by Jean-Paul Marcheschi.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons