Guedelon 4 October

Today we fulfilled our reason for coming to France and visited Guédelon Castle, a 25 year project in the forest in Treigny  Burgundy, where a team of crasfts  people, enthusiasts and volunteers are building a medieval castle using only the tools, materials and techniques from the 13^th century. 

This amazing historial and archeological project is fascinating to observe and with a bit of imagination to see past the other tourists, gives you a real insight into the sights and sounds of such a site in the 1200’s.  

All the materials are sourced from the surrounding area which was chosen for its oak forest and sandstone quarry. Everything in the ‘village’ around the castle itself is created by hand, on site and you can really see the interdependence between all the different crafts in action. When a quarry worker broke his axe, he simply headed straight off to the carpenters for a new handle.  All the rope is made by hand on specially made machines built by the carpenters and blacksmiths, the tiles for the roof and floor are made from from clay dug out of the ground and fired in a wood fired kiln built into a mound nearby. Paints and dyes are made from natural materials and plants found in the forest.

The site lacked the sheer volume of workers that must have been employed for such an endeavour in the real 13th Century and therefore the bustle and noise that must have accompanied it. Nonetheless the steady clunks of the mason's hammers and the creak of the ropes pulling baskets of mortar up to the towers, along with the clang from the smithy and the rumble of the horse and cart as various load are delivered around the site provides the necessary background to bring the value of this project to life. 

http://www.guedelon.fr/en/