Wednesday 2 July 2014
The Chateau de
Marqueyssac is a 17th-century château and gardens located at Vezac, in
the Dordogne Department of France. The château was built at the end of the 17th
century by Bertrand Vernet de Marqueyssac, Counselor to Louis XIV, on cliffs
overlooking the Dordogne Valley. The original garden a la française was
attributed to a pupil of Andre Le Notre, and featured terraces, alleys, and a
kitchen garden surrounding the chateau. Between 1830 and 1840, Julien Bessieres
constructed a chapel and a grand alley one hundred meters long for horseback
rides. In the second half 20th century the house was rarely occupied and the
gardens were not well maintained. Beginning in 1996, a new owner, Kleber
Rossillon, restored the gardens to their old character and added some new
features including an alley of santolina and rosemary and, in the romantic
spirit of the 19th century, a course of water descending from the belvedere and
ending in a cascade. The gardens were opened to the public in 1996. Source
