Ruined Castles and Legends Galore
Situated in the Valley of the Barousse Let me take you on a tour of yet another Medieval ruin. Please join me on an adventure to the Chateau de Bramevaque.
A medieval Castle complete with a Tower and numerous remains. With more Grim legends and tales than recorded History.
Yesterday we Had the day out on a scouting mission with our son and one of his friends. Four Intrepid adventurers and our faithful Guide dog.
The mission was simple.
Adventure, Exploration, and good writing material of course.
Upon arriving at the Hilltop town of Bramevaque you are greeted with a series of old houses and a Giant Tilleul Tree that Was Planted in the 15th or 16th Century or on the first Anniversary of the Revolution.
Depending on Who you ask and the local legends.
Regardless at 4 meters around and 13 Meters tall its bloody impressive.
Scattered through out the this tiny Village there are spots like this, an old clothes washing trough called a Bassin Public, which now has been filled with goldfish and plants.
This was originally located under the large tilleul tree in the center, and was where the town would wash their clothes. Its now a little peaceful pond to sit and relax.
As you walk through the village everywhere around you is a unique sense of travelling back in time. There are cars in the driveways, and the road is paved but its silent. Not even a soul stirring on a sunny Saturday morning.
Look a genuine Medieval dinner bell, Grubs up!
As you get towards the path leading the the castle the shift is dramatic, the road abruptly cuts off and you are confronted with the beginning of the trail up. One minute Blacktop the next Grass and Stones.
So far so good, doesn't look like much of a problem even for little legs.
Only a short distance in to the walk and you start to feel isolated. Completely cut off from the outside world.
Dirt tracks and mossy boulders dotting the way, leading you ever deeper into a calm and peaceful treasure trove of color and dappled sunlight.
Even the kids were calming down, not too much running off, everyone staying close. Just enjoying the sounds of the birds and the trees rustling above.
Every now and again the dirt path would give way to the remnants of the original paving. Usually in the steeper uphill areas where they have been continually washed clean by the rain over the years.
Apparently according to the information at the Mairie, from the start of the path you can get to the castle itself with a 300 meter walk, But there are so many paths to explore it took us a good hour to get to the main entrance.
This path right here is the old main access to the Chateau de Bramevaque. Remnants of the walls which are along the way in various stages of decay.
As you get to the end of that pathway. You catch your first sight of the Castle.
For some reason someone's dumped a big old wood chipper over here. I would have happily gotten rid of it but its a lot bigger than it looks.
The old stone steps are still intact leading up along the path, and now the kids are REALLY excited.
Nice, It's lookin pretty damn impressive from here. We're all starting to get itchy explorers feet now.
We took a quick tour around the outer wall before heading up, admiring the ruins from every (Accessible) side.
The bones of the Chateau seemed to be sticking up from every outcropping and direction. The place must have been huge back in the day.
As you go up into the central part of the building the ruins become more complete in places.
Intact doorways and remains of arrow slits. More stone stairs leading you ever closer to the Tower at the top of the hill.
Until you hit the remains of the Chapel. Which appears to have been built to mirror the mountain, Mont Sacon, behind.
From inside it perfectly frames the same mountain. It was a great place to stop and take a load off. Have a drink from our water bottles and admire the scenery.
Inside the chapel are the remains of Carved Mantles and window frames. The first signs of the stone detailing that once was here.
This is where things got Very tricky and Photo opportunities became a bit difficult. Heading up towards the tower This is the path.
A Hand rail and Chain, all seemingly designed to be the perfect height for children to fall over or under,and only a 20 meter or so drop straight down on the side.
So little hands in tow we made the very slow climb up.
Eventually we got to the top and somehow I didn't even take a picture of the door.
Once inside the tower you are faced with what apparently are 2 Sinks. One for washing at and the other to hold drinking water.
Opposite is a Large alcove. Not sure what the hell that's for.
And inside the wall as is usually the case in medieval castles. Is the staircase. This was a perfect opportunity to tell the kids a ghost story.
The Tale of the Cannibal Countess. More on that Later.
When you get to the next floor there is this amazingly cozy nook where a mattress would have been placed . Welcome to the master bedroom.
This nook here must have had a use, but I'm not sure exactly what.
All that sunlight in here came from this Floor to ceiling window. It gave the place a nice modern feel.
Seriously though at this stage the children were kept under extreme scrutiny.
Back into the wall we go to get to the top. The staircase is at least lit by natural light now. Each step is about 2 feet high. So big steps are needed.
Once you get to the top the views are just amazing. The walls add a reasonable amount of security so the kids are safe enough to have a good look around.
At this height you can start to see the scale of the original buildings, and the houses of the village below.
But the view of the valley itself is the most impressive.
On the way down we stopped for a few minutes to calm everyone down and get ready for the descent.
These are the walls at the foot of the tower where once again I didn't photo the fuckin door. I cant believe I didn't photo the bloody door. Seriously What a cock up.
I'll Describe it, Its almost identical to the arched doorway I showed earlier.
But They put up a modern metal prison style door on it to keep animals out.
Anyway after much careful walking we all got safely back to the path, still with both kids in tow. So I'll say that was a successful trip.
Four people in, Four people out. No Man, woman or child left behind.
A few shots for fun on the way down. Seriously there are easily a dozen old paths with overgrown remnants and walls surrounding this place. You could easily spend the whole day just following the paths.
Now Welcome to Rubidos:
FUN Facts and HISTORY!
Château des Comtes de Comminges de Bramevaque
Its Uncertain the exact date of the construction but it appears to be From the 12th century mostly according to researchers and archaeologists. At least for once they agree on something.
The first works and construction here is recorded in history as commencing as far back as the 11th century.
The history we have now itself is mostly Legend and Lore.
The first most popular Legend states:
Bramevaque was the home of the Last Countess of the Comminges, Locked away for the safety of the people.
Imprisoned in the Tower by her husband the Countess began to grow in her evil ways.
As Legend has it the countess was in fact an ogress, a ghoul, an undead monster of the first degree.
In her Tower she began to demand and eat human flesh every day to get her fill. Preferably The flesh of a Young child. Freshly prepared from the nearby village.
One day, having been unable to find a child for her meal as they had all been hidden away, her henchmen take a freshly born calf. Serving it to her in secret hoping she doesn't notice.
The screaming bellows of the poor calves mother at the foot of the keep, which lasted for days on end, alarmed the countess so much she Demanded to know the reason.
When she learned the truth, she finally understood the pain of the childrens mothers, and never demanded a child again for her meal.
This is why the Castle was given the name of Bramevaque , literally in local patois vache qui meugle or "cow that moo's"
The Kids were eating that story up in the stairwell.
But....
The more likely History is as follows
From 1421 to 1443, The tower you see was the prison of Marguerite de Comminges, daughter of Raymond II de Comminges .The Last Countess de Comminges.
At this time women were only playthings for the lordly games of men vying for power and control.
Where the Hell is Comminges? A former feudal county founded in the 10th century, Sitting smack dab in the middle of the current departments of The Gers, Haute-Garonne and Hautes-Pyrénées.
During her life poor Marguerite is passed off and married 3 times, The first time is to the Count of Armagnac at just 12 years old, I'm sure she was delighted...(and apparently The Count was a violent and angry man, all in all a good sort)
But Marguerite didn't have long to suffer from her first husband. He Kicked the bucket in 1418 in Paris, during a Revolt. One down two to go.
NEXT!
The second husband was the Count of Pardiac, Another Noble dude of Armagnac lineage and Lets be fair he was only after Marguerite's cash and land.
Rather Uniquely at this time she managed to fight him off with a few dedicated family retainers and preserve her rights. That's two dickheads down one to go.
NEXT!
Here third and final husband was Mathieu lord of Foix.
Her future Jailer. Things got nasty for the lady just after he married Marguerite, who was younger than him by far. After the wedding, he claimed her title and became The Count of Comminges...
Well of course once he had what he wanted he locked her up in the fortress of Bramevaque. Leaving the instructions to his men-
She must never get out. Not Ever!
Guess she was just lucky in love?
She was confined for 22 Years of her life until 1443. When he met his end. That's A Full half of her life in that tiny tower bedroom you see in the photos. Yup That stone shelf in the tower was her room.
When he finally died She was Free at last. (I feel its safe to say his widow probably wasn't tearing herself up and crying at night.)
A small shadow of the girl she was, Only to die a few months later.
Thus is the end of the last member and countess of the House of Comminges. The county was taken over by the Kingdom of France in 1498.
History accounts are unconfirmed but these are the 2 most popular legends. To be completely honest I'm pretty sure the Ogress and undead claims were spread by the husband so no one felt sorry for the poor Lass, and he could keep up his Image.
All Photos taken by me on My Chinesium Phone A Xiamoi Mi 11 lite
Post 21 - That's Three Whole Weeks
I decided I'm going to have a bit of fun on this 30 posts in 30 days. I'm going to do a post 31, and a giveaway on the 31st post, cause some months have 31 days or so I've been told.
In spite of my rough and ready appearance I'm an Antique dealer I know I already said it.
So it'll probably be old shit in your mailbox.
Stay tuned and engage down below . For every post from day 1 if you comment on it you will get one entry and a chance to win.
Then at the end of the 30 posts, on day 31 There will be a random raffle you will get a chance to win....
Really cool old shit.
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A really cool place for an awesome adventure, I hope you had a good time 🙃
🙃 It was good, in spite of worrying about the kiddos. Might have to try and get the missus there alone to live out my medieval fantasies. But I'm pretty sure Id get The Mace.
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Luckily I read "Bluebeard" before arriving in Paris. When a stranger in the street greeted me with "Jolie," I quicken my steps before running for my life!😂 There are too many cautionary tales of pedophiles, gaslighting, and femicide in France. Thanks for adding more to the collection of horrors.
Yeah some of the cities can be tricky, depending on where you are. Not to mention the french can have an odd sense of humor 🤣
Always happy to provide fuel for the fire. Running for your life is always a good greeting no matter where you are!
According to Jackie Mansas who comments on the bottom of this article (he did his Doctorate thesis on this castle and the whole area), this never belonged to the Count of Comminges but was an administrative decision of the Barousse elected officials back in 1993 to say it did in order to attract tourists (he was at that meeting). https://paratge.wordpress.com/2012/11/02/bramevaque/
I'm totally bilingual English French and spent half of my life in the South of France.
It's all very complicated and explained in his blog here. It was a féodale military castle and they are still unsure of the exact owners at that time. But the legends are great!
http://capsbourrutdespyrenees.over-blog.com/2021/05/les-deux-bramevaque-des-pyrenees-2.html
Thanks for the info! I guess the Mairie in this case wasn't the best source of information. I guess seeing the size of the village I'm not surprised they decided to spice the story up a bit to attract visitors.
The legends are alot of fun tho.
I'm reading the articles now, thanks again.