Jaujac : village de caractère

Located on the banks of the Lignon, at an altitude of 420 meters, the village has managed to preserve and enhance a deep medieval character. This atmosphere is accentuated by cobbled streets, the castle of Castrevieille, the castle of Bruget. The central square lined with majestic plane trees exudes a very southern atmosphere and regularly comes alive on market days.
This village is also a major site of Ardèche volcanism.

The village takes its name from the ancient lordship of the Jaujac family, who lived in the 12th century and resided at the Château de Chastelas on the left bank of the river. A star-shaped medieval village, it is built around a tree-lined square adorned with a fountain. Its uniqueness lies in its triad of castles: Castrevieille, Le Bruget, and Rochemure.

A triad of castles.
There are three castles in the town.
The 13th-century Château de Castrevieille stands at the entrance to the village and belonged to the Count of Antraïgues before becoming the property of the commune. An imposing mass, it is characteristic of the bastides of southern France: a large main building flanked by towers giving it the appearance of a fort. It currently houses the village hall, as well as several rural gîtes.
Bruget Castle, located on the Roudils road, is the cradle of the ancient Bruget family around the year 1378. The castle is worth a visit, it has a beautiful coat of arms, a room with a magnificent French ceiling as well as a winding staircase ending in an original palm tree vault.
Finally, the Rochemure castle and its grounds, located between the mouth of the volcano and the village, have been transformed to become the home of the Monts d'Ardèche Regional Natural Park.

A historic site steeped in history, the Chastelas Keep, located in the old quarter of Jaujac, was built by the De Jaujac family and razed in the 14th century. Only the base of one of the walls remains in the Chastelas quarter.

Nearby are numerous points of interest, such as the Jaujac cup, the remains of an ancient volcano. The "Roman" bridge of Chastelas allows passage over a tributary of the Lignon on the way to the spa town of Neyrac-Les-Bains.
The surrounding area is ideal for observing ancient basalt flows which have produced magnificent octagonal prisms, known as basalt organs.