Scenography on the village of Usson

The history of Usson from the volcanic period with the appearance of the Butte d’Usson to the present day is presented in a scenography with a model of the village in the 15th century and the ghost of Queen Margot recounting her life and in particular the period when she(…)

The history of Usson from the volcanic period with the appearance of the Butte d’Usson to the present day is presented in a scenography with a model of the village in the 15th century and the ghost of Queen Margot recounting her life and in particular the period when she was exiled to Usson for 19 years, between 1585 and 1605.
Widely involved in the religious and political quarrels of her time, Queen Margot was exiled to Usson by order of her brother Henri III for 19 years.
Granddaughter of François 1er (whose emblem was the salamander found in Usson), daughter of Henri II and Catherine de Médicis, sister of Charles IX, wife of Henri de Navarre, future Henri IV, Marguerite de Valois, known as Queen Margot, was born in 1553.
Imprisoned in the fortress of Usson in 1585 on the orders of her brother Henri III, after getting rid of her jailer the Marquis de Montboissier-Canillac, she refurbished and decorated the château and held a brilliant and spiritual court attended by the best minds of her time, welcoming writers, poets, singers and musicians, inaugurating a literary genre by writing her memoirs, giving charity to the poor (Donnerie d’Usson), and leading a pious life without neglecting her love life.
After her well-negotiated marriage to Henri IV, she was able to return to Paris in 1605, where she died 10 years later.