Photo : Wikimedia Commons
Château de Calmont d'Olt
Perched on a basalt peak above Espalion, the château de Calmont d'Olt overlooks the Lot valley, the Aubrac and the Causses. The site is mentioned as early as 883 and the castle itself in 1161. The Calmont d'Olt family died out at the end of the thirteenth century; the estate then passed to the Pelet, Castelnau, Caylus, Clermont-Lodève and then d'Albert de Luynes.
Several times ransacked, notably in 1364 and 1595, it was neglected in the seventeenth century and fell into ruin. The upper enclosure includes a keep dating from the year one thousand, a main building and two towers; the lower enclosure, from the fifteenth century, has eight towers open at the gorge.
Bought back in 1987, the castle is restored by an association with the help of volunteers. Listed as a historic monument, it offers guided tours and activities around life in the Middle Ages and the art of siege.
