Chateau Raysse is an enchanted castle for rental in France’s Dordogne

In Arcadian Périgord, guarding the Dordogne Valley close to the River Dordogne, Chateau Raysse is a resplendent Mediaeval chateau constructed in the twelfth and seventeenth centuries. The ancient estate of 12 hectares comprises three main rental properties and two swimming pools.The Chateau itself comprises three living rooms and seven bedrooms. The charming estate includes two other rental properties, La Maison Du Parc, a converted annexe sleeping 18 people and Le Pigeonnier, a reworked pigeon house that sleeps up to five.Chateau Raysse emerges from 20 acres of meadows, centennial trees and wilderness. Shallow sunshine shards dapple secluded spots in the expansive gardens and desultory walks snake through the woods.Children love our animals. We have several gambolling deer, two bossy donkeys – Vanille and Chocolat – and two quizzical goats – Esmeralda and Quasimodo.We have two swimming pools, a steam room, a secure trampoline and (in the Maison du Parc) a full-size snooker table.There is a range of activities to choose near the estate, including canoeing, golf and horse-riding.

History

The castle’s tower was laid in 1155 for the Raysse family, allies of the French Aquitaine duchy which was unpatriotically siding with Eleanor and her English husband Richard the Lionheart against the French king Louis VII. The body of the Chateau was built at the end of the religious wars (about 1690).The overlayings of history interweave the fibrous cultural interstices of Chateau Raysse in this ancient land, the Perigord, which is the birthplace of modern (Cro Magnon) man.