Across the European countryside, castles rise from the land, bringing with them thoughts of knights, princesses, and lavish royal banquets. They attract tourists from around the world and provide a grand backdrop to our favorite stories. While these structures of the past have integrated themselves into today’s society they were not originally built as homes for royalty. Instead, they were built to serve as a defensive structure that protected the surrounding villages. The first castles began appearing in the early 10th century and continued to be constructed until the 16th century when new weaponry appeared on the field of battle that could penetrate their fortifications.
To this day, European castles continue to capture the imagination of the young and old alike. Years of study have provided historians and archaeologists an understanding of how castles were once constructed, but one castle enthusiast decided to put that knowledge to the test.
In 1995 Nicolas Faucherre (fortification expert) and Christian Corvisier (castellologist) conducted a study of Saint-Fargeau castle in Yonne France. They discovered a castle within the castle. Underneath the red brick walls were the stone walls of a medieval castle. They presented Michel Guyot (the castle owner) with a drawing of the original castle's layout and a report of their findings. The last line on the final page captured Guyot's attention. “Reconstructing Saint-Fargeau castle would be an amazing project.”
The thought captured Guyot's imagination. He gathered a group of fellow castle enthusiasts to help. Almost from the beginning, they decided not to replicate the medieval castle Faucherre and Corvisier had discovered but to build a new castle, inspired by neighboring castles constructed in the 13th century, and using period technology and materials. Construction on Guédelon Castle began in 1997 with only the basic knowledge of castle construction. The team consisted of historians, archeologists, master quarrymen and masons, as well as woodsmen, mortar makers, and other workmen who were willing to learn as they went.
The completion of the castle was not the ultimate goal for the project. Everyone involved wanted “to observe, in the finest detail, each phase of the construction.” Project organizers knew they would have to work carefully using a strict scientific approach while balancing the public’s interest and answering questions from researchers, archaeologists, and castelollogists.
As in any historical research project context is important. Researchers created a backstory for the project that properly placed the construction in time and social standing.
“The builder of Guédelon castle is Guilbert, a fictional low-ranking local lord, vassal of Jean de Toucy, himself vassal to the king of France. His overlord has just granted him "licence to crenellate".
His modest status in the feudal hierachy and his limited financial means, prompt him to raise a "small" castle, a fortified manor house, far removed from the scale of the royal castles of the Louvre in Paris or Brie-Comte-Robert in Seine-et-Marne.”
As construction continues, workers have been presented problems with no immediate answers. Through trial and error, they have had to determine the layout of a 13th century construction site, which tools provide the best results, and the correct chemical composition of mortar. As complications continue to arise, workers have to constantly consider different options to determine what works best in the field. To help, architects and historians have surveyed castles from the same period and consulted modern scientific sources to create a database workers can consult when they encounter a problem.
With a team of seventy people, forty of them involved in the castle’s construction, it is estimated it will take twenty-five years to complete. While it is still under construction the public is welcomed and encouraged to visit Guédelon Castle. For visitors who wish for a hands-on experience, they can apply for the Master-builder course, Work placement, or group educational programs where they can work alongside masters of the trade.
To learn more, stop by https://www.guedelon.fr/