Arielle and Hervé Borne take over the Château d'Ainay-Le-Vieil in the Cher department. This listed monument, which has belonged to the same family for over half a millennium, has been taken over by the younger generation.
château d'Ainay-le-Viel, built in the 13th century, is a powerful fortified château , once owned by Jacques Cœur. Essential to the defense of the Kingdom of France during the 100 Years' War, this fortress was softened during the Renaissance by the Lords of Bigny, who made it their residence from 1467. Château d'Ainay-le-Vieil came into the family.
551 years and 26 generations later, this medieval château is still owned by the same family whose ancestors left their mark on French history:
Colbert, minister to Louis XIV, the Duchesse de Tourzel, governess to the children of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette during the Revolution, and Auguste de Colbert, a brilliant Empire general close to Napoleon.
In 1954, Baron and Baroness Géraud d'Aligny, née Colbert, opened the château to the public and helped create the Route Jacques Cœur. From then on, the family divided its heritage into opening the château to the general publicTheir six children continue this adventure. Jean-Baptiste, Michel, Auguste, Jean-Pierre d'Aligny, Marie-France de Peyronnet and Marie-Sol de La Tour d'Auvergne developed the cultural and tourist aspects of the château.Today, Arielle, daughter of Marie-Sol de La Tour d'Auvergne, and her husband Hervé Borne, are taking over Château d'Ainay-le-Vieil.
A new adventure begins: Following a major wave of renovation work starting immediately, during which the château and its gardens will remain open to the public, a number of projects are underway.
A new reception area and a redesigned boutique from next spring, a restaurant and five guest rooms in 2019, and the opening of three gîtes in 2020.
Arielle, a photographer, and Hervé, a journalist, bring their dynamism and bring Château d'Ainay-le-Vieil into the 21st century.
