Discover the castles of the Lot Valley in Lozère: the Lot Valley is richer than anywhere else in Lozère in castles, keeps and ramparts. Some are still inhabited, while others have been forgotten for centuries… What they all have in common, however, is that they tell the story of a part of the Gévaudan’s history, and bear witness to a bygone era when lords and bishops ruled the Gévaudan.
Who can fail to be moved by the sight of the Chanac keep, the Villard ramparts, the Château de Saint-Saturnin, Montjézieu and its castle, or the Château de Salelles? Most of them are private residences, sometimes still home to their “châtelain”. They are sometimes open to visitors, as is the case for the Donjon de Chanac, emblem of the village, and the Château de Saint-Saturnin, whose silhouette still amazes the many travelers from the south who catch a glimpse of it at the foot of the Sauveterre cliffs.
In addition to the castles and vestiges still in good condition, some castles have left only the ruins of their passage… The sight of the old stones of Château de Montferrand or Château de Canilhac is a melancholy one. Despite their ruined state, it’s not hard to imagine the importance these places once held: one was the residence of Pope Urbain V’s mother, the other the seat of one of the most powerful baronies in Gévaudan.
