Château de Vertrieu, known as the "modern château", and its grounds

Historic site and monument

273 rue du Raz Buisson
38390 Vertrieu

This noble residence, founded in the 17th and 18th centuries, with a dwelling flanked by 4 square towers, was refurbished in the 19th and 20th centuries. It occupies a remarkable site with landscaped parklands and outbuildings on the banks of the Rhône.

The castle was built in the middle of the 17th century by the Lord of Vertrieu, to replace the old, ruined castle. The 'new' castle was built in the middle of a park, between the village and the Rhone, which it overlooks from a terrace. Composed of a main building flanked by four square towers (2 with pavilion roofs on the Rhone side, and 2 with French imperial style roofs on the village side), the building was restored in 1712, under the direction of the Lyonnese architect Claude Perret, who designed the park.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the main building was enlarged, and the early towers were covered with French imperial style roofs. The domain is accessible by a monumental gate on the village side, on a path paved with rough, rounded stones; the outbuildings are found between the village and the castle. Regular gardens are planted with conical yew and boxwood spread out on a terrace alongside the Rhone, while to the east the landscaped park leads to a poplar grove. At the southern end lies a stone building, covered with local limestone, used formerly for fermentation and a press, while the cellar is outside the inner castle.

The castle, the outbuildings, the park and its buildings, and the castle wall with the large gate have been listed as Historical Monuments in1991. The smoking room on the ground floor and the bedroom on the 1st floor, with their painted murals, have had this status since 1993.