Château d'Arlempdes

Set on a basalt dyke that rises almost 80 metres above the young Loire, the Château d'Arlempdes is reputed to be the first château on the Loire. Meaning: the first one the river passes, about forty kilometres from its source.

It crowns the village of Arlempdes, one of the Plus Beaux Villages de France (the Most Beautiful Villages of France).

The fortress is mentioned as early as 1267, as a fief of the barons of Montlaur. It then passed to the Poitiers family, who rebuilt it in the 15th and 16th centuries. Their coat of arms is still carved above the entrance door, and Diane de Poitiers bore the title of Lady of Arlempdes.

Listed as a historic monument since 1926, the site has belonged since 1963 to the ASACHAR association, which restores it campaign after campaign. The keep and the guardroom were renovated in 2016.

On site, it is a consolidated ruin. You pass the porch, the entrance door with its machicolations, then the keep, the curtain walls, the kitchens and, on the rocky outcrop to the east, the Romanesque chapel of Saint-Jacques, built of red breccia.

You visit without a guide, at your own pace. Ask for the leaflet with your ticket: it tells the story of the site step by step. The view over the Loire gorges does the rest.