In the book VI, page 477 of "HISTOIRES de BERRY" (1689), Gaspard THOMAS de la THOMASSIERE recount the story of the château de Beaujeu:
| ...This land, located 25 miles from the city of Bourges and 6 miles from Sancerre
used to be part of the Chapelle Dam-Gilon's domain and has been given to Eudes de Seuly, chief of the
Beaujeu branch.
...This land went to the Rochechouart family, then to the du Ménil-Simon family, who lived there during more than two centuries, and then to the Mesgrigny family... ...The old house of the lords was the château de Beaujeu, near the parish of Nully. The new château has been built by Jean du Ménil-Simon during the last century, at the bottom of the Sens hill, near the Sauldre river, in a very convenient and pleasant place under the parish of Sens. |
It's in the middle of the XVIth century that the Ménil-Simon family left the old château where we can still see the ruins, to move on the other side of the Sauldre valley.
The Ménil-Simon family owned Beaujeu until the XVIIth century, probably 1664, date of Françoise-Henriette du Ménil-Simon's wedding with Jean-François de Mesgrigny, Marquis of Vendeuvre and main equerry of the king.
In 1688, Louise de Mesgrigny married Jacques Bouthillier de Chavigny and Beaujeu stayed in this family until the French Revolution. In 1784, Beaujeu was owned by Gabrielle Pauline Bouthillier de Chavigny, Countess of Adhémar, queen Marie-Antoinette's lody-in-waiting and sister of the Marquis of Bouthillier.
It's in 1809 that Pierre-Maurice de Pommereau, head of the Treasury in Bourges, bought Beaujeu from the Countess of Adhémar.
