Chateau de La Rode

The history of the castle

Located near Castres, 30 minutes from Castelnaudary, 50 minutes from Toulouse, and 1 hour from Carcassonne, this former Cistercian abbey is a historical gem of the Tarn region.

Its well-preserved cloister still bears witness to its religious past.

Its origins date back to the 12th century, and despite the Wars of Religion, the French Revolution, and the 19th-century renovations, it has lost none of its grandeur and welcomes you today for the important events in your life. The origins of the château date back to the 10th century.

A 12th-century abbey

The Château de la Rode, whose origins date back to the 12th century, was a Cistercian abbey until the French Revolution. Originally, La Rode was a grange—so called because a few monks lived there and employed local peasants—dependent on the Abbey of Ardorel.

It was in 1114 that the Benedictine community settled at Ardorel in the Montagne Noire.

In 1124, Cécile of Provence, Viscountess of Béziers, summoned monks from Cadouin who enabled the young abbey to flourish amidst an estate that encompassed farms, tenant farms, and granges. It was at this time that Ardorel joined the Cistercian order.

The Cistercian order, founded in 1098, followed the rule of Saint Benedict, namely the vow of silence and the vow of perpetual abstinence. Highly austere yet also very well-organized, the Cistercian abbeys were all dependent on the mother abbey of Cîteaux. This order exerted its influence throughout Europe until the 15th century.

La Rode in the Renaissance

The terrible period of the Wars of Religion in Languedoc was a disaster for the monasteries.

One evening in 1586, a figure approached the heavy door of Ardorel Abbey. The guestmaster recognized the nephew of one of the monks, was unsuspecting, and opened the door. Immediately, an army of Protestants surged forward, overwhelming the guestmaster.

The monks had no time to defend themselves, and the abbey was pillaged, burned, and completely razed. The monks present were thrown into the well, and the few survivors decided to retreat to their grange at La Rode, which they had owned since 1258 in Lempaut…

The current castle

The current château has undergone numerous alterations since the French Revolution.

The most significant were carried out in the 19th century, when a large part of the religious buildings were demolished and a wing was added on the park side.
The vast 11-hectare park now houses the current house, its dovecote, and extensive outbuildings. The château grounds are now open to you to celebrate the important moments in your life.

For history enthusiasts, a digitized book recounts the modern era of Ardorel Abbey:

“General History of Languedoc” by two Benedictine monks of the Congregation of Saint Maur (free).