Association de Sauvegarde du

CHATEAU DE GAVRAY

INTRODUCTION

Note: This menu dedicated to the remains of the castle includes very large excerpts from the dissertation  "The castle of Gavray - History and Archaeology"  by Mrs. Jocelyne and Jacqueline Leparmentier - B.N.F. and  the 1989 excavation report written under the responsibility of Mrs. Jocelyne Leparmentier.

Summary

1 – Note on the geology and geomorphology of the site (Extract from the report by Messrs. Ozouf and Coutard, CNRS geologists)
2 – Presentation of the site
3 – The state of play
4 – The archaeological research and the excavations
Appendices:
a – the reconstruction essay
b – the disputed description of Charles-François Onfroy de Tracy

1 - Note on the geology and geomorphology of the site

(Excerpt from the report by Messrs. Ozouf and Coutard, geologists at the CNRS geomorphology center).

2 – Presentation of the site

Few remains remain on the surface of the ground, the castle having been used as a quarry probably as early as the seventeenth century. All the hewn stones have disappeared and the remaining sections of the walls are almost all unfacing. Work carried out about fifty years ago to make the site more accessible and to open a path at the foot of the ramparts has only further deteriorated the place: the ditch separating the entrance and the presumed barbican has been partially filled, and the bulldozer seems to have overcome some portions of the rampart,  particularly fragile.

The overall shape of the speaker is very elongated:
- 150 m from east to west,
- only 50 m from north to south at the widest point, following the shape of the rocky spur on which it rests.
Two sections of the rampart of about thirty metres, which had partly kept their facing, have been cleared:
- one, to the north, overlooking the Siena bridge, is made up of large, badly aligned blocks,
- the other, to the south, at the back of the keep, has a more neat device.
It has not been possible to observe elsewhere the mode of construction of the ramparts, but it is quite obvious that we are dealing with several building campaigns.
Inside the enclosure there are two very different areas:
- One, with a steep slope (about 20%), extends from the gap currently marking the entrance to the top of the hill. The differences in height observed in this area suggest that there was a first defensive reduction there.
- The other, which occupies the top of the hill, is a vast platform representing 9/10ths of the surface with less than 3% slope. Two groups of buildings are taking shape:
- one, around the keep,
- the other, at the eastern end of the enclosure (dwelling).
Generally speaking, it can be assumed that there are many other remains on the site, which excavations would reveal.

3 - The state of play

In 1980, the Château de Gavray was sinking into total oblivion. Of course, we knew about its existence and the main features of its history, but we ended up forgetting the way to it, so impassable had this place become. By the time the clearing of the site began, the location and appearance of the various buildings had long been forgotten. The descriptions were very confused, and the proportions put forward were fanciful, to say the least, at times. For example, G. Renault in the 1857 Annuaire de la Manche: "...raised about 200 m above the river" when in reality 60 m.Il was obvious:
- that no really in-depth research had been carried out on this site, which had known two castles:
* of the Dukes of Normandy, whom the king ordered to be razed to the ground in 1378 following the surrender of the Navarrese garrison to Bertrand Du Guesclin, a destruction completed in 1390 by Thomas Graffart's troops. * the one rebuilt between 1418 and 1444 by the English and which was abandoned in the middle of the seventeenth century and used as a quarry.
- that it was necessary to start from scratch: measurements, plans, precise study of the remains, archival research.

Archaeological research was then undertaken for ten years every July under the direction of Jocelyne Leparmentier.

4 - Archaeological research and excavations

The archaeological study was of interest for a number of reasons:
- The castle of Gavray was important in the Middle Ages.
- Norman castles have rarely been the subject of an exhaustive study, as such it was an important contribution to the history of military fortifications, to the study of their evolution and function.
- the medieval and modern sites excavated in the English Channel are very few. This research could lead to a better understanding of trade and human exchanges. For example, the earthware comes mainly from the Domfrontais and the coin of Conan II, Duke of Brittany who died in 1066, is one of the very few Breton coins of this period unearthed in Normandy etc.

Finally, the castle was abandoned at the beginning of the seventeenth century and was used as a quarry, which leaves the field open for archaeological research

Three areas seemed to be of particular interest:
- the entrance to the castle, the shape of which is not known,
- the massive square building, sitting at the highest point of the hill and which everything designated as the keep,
- a set of poorly defined constructions at the eastern end of the enclosure below the central plateau.
Elsewhere, the huge conifers seemed to have ravaged the ground too deep to leave any chance for archaeological interpretation.
The 1989  excavation report concluded, in the chapter "Future Prospects", as  follows:
 "The continuation of the archaeological excavation must continue next year in the eastern area, otherwise deterioration due to bad weather or unscrupulous visitors risks irretrievably  causing us to lose valuable clues.
It is therefore important to carry out a complete excavation next year of the area that has been partially excavated this year, with the aim of studying the succession of buildings and their function.

The following table summarizes the problem of the search:

Proposed excavation

Objective

* Room C:

Study of the previous building.

Possible traces of this building.

* Courette F :

outside the latrines, evacuation. Underneath, there are any traces of occupation of the previous building

* Buildings A and B:

Then, it would be necessary to widen the excavated area to the south of buildings A and B in order to study the south wall of this building and see its relationship with the rest of the area: an isolated construction or part of a whole?

No excavations have been undertaken since that time, which dates back 25 years.

Appendices :

a – The reconstitution test

Reconstruction essay carried out by Rhoda CRONIN-ALLANIC
Archaeologist – IllustratorMember of the Board of Directors of the association
www.rhoda-allanic-illustration.fr

This essay depicts the castle as it must have existed before its destruction in 1378 by Bertrand Du Guesclin, then in 1390 by Thomas Graffart.Il was made from the few documents available, with the help of comparisons with similar constructions of the same period and the Dictionnaire raisonné de l'architecture française du XIe au XVIe siècle de Viollet-le-Duc.Si This essay does not allow us to ensure its complete authenticity,  Nevertheless, it is a new way to facilitate and improve the understanding of these remains and to advocate for their preservation and enhancement.

b - The disputed description of Charles François ONFROY de TRACY who died in 1823

Charles-François Onfroy de Tracy, who died in 1823, in his book  "Gavray and  its castle" published in 1863 by Siméon Luce, described the castle as follows: "In the 14th century, the site of the castle presented its rounded mass quite similar to the prow of an overturned ship.
The hill on which the fortifications stand is 47 metres wide by 126 metres long and covers an area of 4,600 m2.
To the south-east:  at its feet and flanks, thatched houses surround it, and a few gardens climb higher up to the moat of the old fortress (today: rue du moulin à tan). "Des Bains", located on the height, can be seen above the fortifications of the enclosure, the apse of the chapel and the mass of a gigantic Keep and the neighbouring towers.
To the west, coming from Avranches or Cérences, you can see the remains of a vast semi-circular tower gutted in the middle, the outer covering of which can still be seen. In front of the semi-circular tower, a platform separated from the main fortifications by a trench 12 to 15 metres wide, dug into the rock, dominates the only access road to the castle.At the end of the
road leading down from the castle there are two towers, the position of which is indicated by the excavations carried out to remove the stones at their base.
This place kept the name of Pont-Gaché certainly because of the first drawbridge that was located there, the second drawbridge had to be placed in front of the platform, the third connected the large tower with the platform.
An old road, probably Roman, linking Coutances to Avranches rises from Pont-Gaché to the Lande Saint-Luc where it runs alongside a strong earthen embankment on reaching the plateau, intended to protect the
approaches to the fortress on this side.
To the north, below the Pont-Gaché, the same path descends to the village, leaning on the right on the hillock and supported on the left by a wall, the remains of which can still be seen.
The wall and the road formed the false braye mentioned  by d'Uronville in his  account of the siege of 1378 in his work "Life of the Duke of Bourbon".
The entrance to this false braye was placed at the corner of the path of the moor and that of the large stone.
To the south, on the Berence side, the walls stand out for their greyish colour.
Two huge masses of stones, said to have been thrown by the explosion of gunpowder in 1378, stopped at a height of 80 meters.
The castle was defended, to the north by the walls, a wide moat, then at the foot of the hill a fairly wide river; to the south, the escarpment of the hill, the river flowing at its feet, and walls of gigantic proportions protected the defenders from any attack.
A distance of 372 metres separated the large tower from the fortifications of Pont-Gaché.

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