The towers of a ducal castle, reshaped by the naturalist Buffon into terraced gardens above his home town.
€265one way from Beaune with a private driver
Private driver from Beaune: 1 h 14 by road (100 km), €265 one way for the whole car.
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Above the town of Montbard, about 75 minutes from Beaune, the old castle of the dukes of Burgundy became the private domain of the naturalist Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon. Two medieval towers still stand among his terraced gardens. The town owns the site, with the Parc Buffon, Buffon's study and the Musée Buffon.
The castle is first mentioned in the late 11th century. Its first known lord, Bernard de Montbard, was the grandfather of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux through his daughter. In 1189 Duke Hugues III of Burgundy acquired Montbard in exchange for Époisses. The dukes turned it into a strong fortress in the 13th and 14th centuries, and the Valois dukes often stayed here in the 15th century.
Buffon's father bought the local lordship in 1718. Between 1733 and 1742 Buffon took over the castle, cleared the ruined buildings and filled the ramparts with earth to create terraces. He kept the Tour de l'Aubespin, the old keep, and the church, and lowered the Tour Saint-Louis by one storey. In a small study on the ramparts he wrote much of his Histoire naturelle. The town bought the abandoned estate in 1870 and made it a public park.
The Tour de l'Aubespin is a tall polygonal keep with four vaulted floors and machicolations, a rare survivor of the ducal castle. The Tour Saint-Louis, cut down by Buffon, held his library. Around them, fourteen terraces in the French and Italian manner step down the hill, with trees, flowers and an orangery. Buffon's cabinet de travail, his simple study, still stands on the western rampart.
Guided tours of the towers and Buffon's study start at 11:00, 14:30 and 16:00, and the park is free all year.
Checked on on the official site.
The terraced park is a public garden, open free of charge all year, with views over the town and the towers. The Musée Buffon, in the former stables, presents Buffon's life and 18th-century natural science, and entry is free. From June to August, guided tours take visitors into the Tour de l'Aubespin, Buffon's study and the underground rooms. Allow 1.5 to 2 hours. Combine with the Abbey of Fontenay nearby.
What to combine with Château de Montbard et Parc Buffon on the same day, nearest first.
Château de Montbard et Parc Buffon is about 1 h 14 from Beaune by road (100 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €265 for the whole car, up to 4 guests.
Did you know? Buffon wrote his Histoire naturelle from 1749 to 1788, much of it in his small study at Montbard. Jean-Jacques Rousseau is said to have knelt at its door in admiration.
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€265 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests
