I was totally seduced by the charm of the chateau’s gardens.  The masters of the site greet you on arrival: an immense, robust, magnificent cedar tree and its sparring partner, the keep. They open the gates of History – onto the Middle Ages and the Renaissance – and transport you towards the gardens sitting proudly above the Dronne River, dominating the valley and offering the most wonderful, silent and calming view.

I was lucky enough to be present for the shooting of the films made for television, “Cartouche, Le Brigand Magnifique” with Fréderic Diefenthal and “Richelieu, la Pourpre et le Sang” with Jacques Perrin. Visits of the chateau with theatrical backdrops and sets were not yet organised as they often are today, but to see the chateau and the gardens complete with decor and costumes was to see it reliving the past. Bumping into musketeers, seeing Cardinal Richelieu in his armchair or taking a walk with Louis XIII became, for a few days, the everyday life of Bourdeilles.

Despite its tumultuous past the site is full of beauty and serenity, with the magic really coming into its own at the moment sun meets stone. As the great gates are opened, the rising sun floods the courtyard before spilling through the gardens while the setting sun warmly embraces the majestic keep. A unique performance…