Château de Bezance – Romagnat town hall

At the Renaissance, residential château emerged on the outskirts of cities, along with large farming estates.

A first château was built by Robert I of Auvergne, in the late 12th century, at the corner of rue Maréchal-Foch and rue des Alliés. Its remains are hard to see.

At the Renaissance, residential château emerged on the outskirts of cities, along with large farming estates.

A first château was built by Robert I of Auvergne, in the late 12th century, at the corner of rue Maréchal-Foch and rue des Alliés. Its remains are hard to see.

The present-day Château de Bezance was built in the 19th century to replace a château dating back to 1650, built by the Carmantrand family, lords of the fiefdom of Bezance. Their hammered coats of arms are displayed above the door. In 1862, Pierre Léon Bérard de Chazelles (1804-1876), mayor of Clermont Ferrand from 1850 to 1860 and deputy of Puy-de-Dôme, became the owner. His daughter Marie-Madeleine married Baron Hubert Clerel de Tocqueville in 1860. His grandson, Bernard de Tocqueville, the last owner, sold the château and its land to the municipality in 1961.

The neo-Louis XIII château is in a U-shape, with an additional wing on the west side. On the north façade, a staircase with convergent steps overlooks the park. The buildings are covered with slate roofs and a Mansard roof. The eastern wing retains a monumental staircase made from Volvic stone, from the 18th century. A decommissioned chapel, service quarters and stables complete the buildings. Inside the château, some decorative features remain (wood joinery, fireplaces, overdoors).

The château has housed the town hall since 1976. The park has been certified a “Refuge” by the Ligue de Protection des Oiseaux (LPO, French society for protection of birds) since 2011.