Guedelon Castle - France

[B. Patricius]

Ok,

to start with I have no idea where to put this.  I figured here as it is definitely a version of living  history and experimental archaeology... on steroids!!

you guys gotta check this out:
http://www.guedelon.fr/en/


and yes, I know Sir Ian and Sir Wolf, it is a frenchie site lol but this one, you gotta admit takes the cake!

[Sir Edward]

I've been wondering about their progress. Looks like they've made a decent amount!

Their site always used to be really scarce with photos.

[Lord Dane]

Hope those Frenchies finish it soon. I just can't wait to siege, raid, & ransack it!!!! Then it shall be either burnt to cinders or my new summer home. I'll decide at a later date. 

[Thorsteinn]

They have a Facebook page.

[Ian]

Check out Mike Loades' Going Medieval.  I want to say one of the segments is on that castle.

[Lord Dane]

Check out Mike Loades' Going Medieval.  I want to say one of the segments is on that castle.

Ian is right, it is. I just watched a repeat of it last week. Always enjoy watching it. It's like watching the Warrior series again from 2009. Never gets old.

[B. Patricius]

I'll have to check those out,
thanks for the TV show ideas   I do love a well thought out show.

Lord Dane,

I'd go for summer vacation home myself

[Sir James A]

Check out Mike Loades' Going Medieval.  I want to say one of the segments is on that castle.

Yep. Also, "Only in America" with Larry the Cable Guy did a bit on it ... 15 or 20 minutes worth I think.

[B. Patricius]

Check out Mike Loades' Going Medieval.  I want to say one of the segments is on that castle.

Yep. Also, "Only in America" with Larry the Cable Guy did a bit on it ... 15 or 20 minutes worth I think.

that was about the castle that never finished in America, this one is in France.

[Sir James A]

Check out Mike Loades' Going Medieval.  I want to say one of the segments is on that castle.

Yep. Also, "Only in America" with Larry the Cable Guy did a bit on it ... 15 or 20 minutes worth I think.

that was about the castle that never finished in America, this one is in France.

Ah, I blanked on that, I ignored most of the episode until I heard "hey look it's a castle" and then paid attention. If I remember right he said it's funded by the same guy doing the one in France or something? Being in the US it's easier and more likely for us west-side-o-the-pond'ers to possibly get to visit. Although the one in France would be french, and easily captured ... quite a dilemma!

[Lord Dane]

Ah, I blanked on that, I ignored most of the episode until I heard "hey look it's a castle" and then paid attention. If I remember right he said it's funded by the same guy doing the one in France or something? Being in the US it's easier and more likely for us west-side-o-the-pond'ers to possibly get to visit. Although the one in France would be french, and easily captured ... quite a dilemma!

The French defense of any of their castles would be as weak as their wine. HAHA!!! Frenchies have a better chance if they conduct a pre-emptive surrender now. Pardon me Sir!!! PARLEE.

[Bradamante]

Guédelon is about an hour and a half south of Paris in the Burgundy region and to get there you must drive a car. It is not accessible by municipal bus or train. The site is in the woods and the nearest big city is Auxerre.

The construction site was chosen not for strategic importance as most castles were built, but because it had all the natural materials necessary to build a castle.

I visited the site in 2007 and again in 2011 and was impressed to see the progress made in the intervening four years.

Here is a link to a Facebook page which has an album with hundreds of photos from Guédelon. 
https://www.facebook.com/pages/La-France-que-jaime/186970871379697?fref=ts

[B. Patricius]

I visited the site in 2007 and again in 2011 and was impressed to see the progress made in the intervening four years.

I am SO jealous right now.   

Sir James, it's sad but the one being built in the states ended as a stillborn.  It's up for sale now.  And there was a really sad article about it.  I wish I could remember the article, I'd post a link.  It's how I found Guedelon Castle actually was the article talking about how they were doing something similar here.

[Bradamante]

Brother Patricius,

It is a shame that the Ozark Medieval Fortress did not generate enough visitors in the two years it was open to become self-supporting.

I tried spreading the word about the site on my blog, but it wasn't enough. ( http://lcmccabe.blogspot.com/search/label/Ozark%20Medieval%20Fortress )

I had wanted to visit the site, but Arkansas is quite a ways away from California and I could not make it happen during our vacation. (It would have been the only reason for us to visit the area since my family is not into the country music scene of Branson, Missouri.)

I believe that many Americans heard that it was a planned twenty year project and thought that they would wait until year five or even ten to visit. Then it would be something worth seeing. In the meantime, there wasn't enough income from visitors and concession sales to pay all of the expenses and allow it to stay open.

It is a shame, because I know there is enough support in the various medievalist communities in the United States to have made the OMF a success.

[Sir James A]

It is a shame, because I know there is enough support in the various medievalist communities in the United States to have made the OMF a success.

Agreed. If we (the whole medieval community) were all close enough geographically, and not so widespread, it would be a huge success and they would likely have to pry a few of us away from the castle by force every once in a while.