History page | Margaux Médoc Tourist Office

The year 1000

From this period onwards, the feudal system was established throughout the region. The feudal system attempted to protect itself by building wooden structures and then fortresses. These fortresses were often built on mounds of earth surrounded by ditches called Motta. They were also often accompanied by a farmyard. In the Middle Ages, Issan in the commune of Cantenac was known as Mott. At Chateau Cantemerle (in Macau), there are the remains of a motte castrale. Château Margaux was built on the site of a fortified site known as Lamothe. Château d'Agassac (in Ludon-Médoc) was also originally built on a Motta site. Today, very little remains from this period.

1101 - 1200 - XII and XIII century

It should be remembered that the lords depended on the King of England, Duke of Aquitaine. Eleanor married Henry Plantagenet, King of England, in 1154. The territory was divided into parishes with churches and ecclesiastical establishments that contributed to the development of the area. The church of Saint Germain d'Arsac appears to have been built in the 12th and 13th centuries. Only the portal on the south wall remains from this period. Secular or religious lords (the abbots of Sainte Croix de Bordeaux) who had settlements in the region encouraged the clearing and development of new land, particularly in low-lying areas. Macau, for example, was a sauveté: an area under ecclesiastical protection that was quite prosperous. A church was built here in the 12th century, but today only the bell tower remains.

1204 - In the 13th centuryMore information

Château Cantemerle (Macau) was first mentioned on this date. It was one of a series of strongholds built to control the Estuary. These included Agassac (Ludon-Médoc), Parempuyre, Blanquefort, Margaux and Lamarque.

1277 - The Marque seigneury

The seigneury of La Marque (La Marche in Gascon) appeared for the first time in 1277 as a châtellenie in the Gascon rolls, but it certainly existed before that date. Two churches were successively built in the commune.

1335 - The Arcins Hospitaller Commandery

Arcins was the seat of a "commanderie hospitalière". This was a landholding belonging to a religious and military order, a sort of large farm that developed the land, contributed to the order's wealth and served as a hostel for pilgrims. It is mentioned in a charter dated 1335, approved by the Grand Prior, Aycard de Miramont. The first knight to be granted the commandery was a certain Arnaud de Sicard. Unfortunately, no trace of him remains, except in the archives. The area was also used by pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela, who arrived via Blaye and stopped off at the commandery.

1350 - The legend of the Cantemerle cannon

ADD HERE THE AUDIO OF THE STORY AND A DESCRIPTIVE
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1453 - The Tower of Bessan

The region was heavily involved in the Hundred Years' War between 1337 and 1453, which pitted the King of France against the King of England (who also held the title of Duke of Aquitaine). The Tour de Bessan illustrates this episode: it was built in 1252 (or 1288) by Jean Colomb, a bourgeois from Bordeaux. The King of England authorised the construction of two strongholds, one at Bommes and the other at Soussans. In 1453, the Hundred Years' War came to an end and the region, which had been under the authority of the King of England, came under the authority of the King of France. To ensure their defence, some strongholds acquired new defensive equipment (changing from archers to gunboats, widening of walls, machicolations, hoardings, etc.). This is the case, for example, of the Tour de Bessan in Soussans.

1599 - Last year of the century, first year of peace

1598 saw the end of the Wars of Religion with the Edict of Nantes. The reign of Henri IV was marked by religious peace, the restoration of absolute monarchy and economic recovery. Thanks to Sully, the emphasis was placed on agriculture and roads. To increase agricultural land, the marshes were drained. The royal edicts of 1599 and 1607 encouraged the reclamation of marshy areas, which until then had been unhealthy. In 1599, the Dutch engineer Humphrey Bradley was appointed Master of the Dykes and Canals of the Kingdom by King Henry IV. In the Bordeaux region, the project was entrusted to Conrad Gaussen. Using canals and dykes, he drained the Chartrons marshes, as well as the marshes and islands to the north of Bordeaux. As a result, the vineyards were able to expand onto new land.

1653 - The Fronde

La Fronde 1648-1653: a period of unrest during which the nobility and parliament believed they could take advantage of Louis XIV's minority to regain their former prerogatives. The parliamentary Fronde and then the Fronde des Princes shook the country and great instability swept through the provinces: it reached the Médoc coast, which was pillaged and some villages, such as Macau, were virtually destroyed. In 1650, the island of Macau, a fortified and strategic site since the 16th century, received the support of cannons and garrisons loyal to the King. The end of the Fronde was confirmed by the entry of royal troops into Bordeaux in August 1653. Although vines were grown here, the famous Macau artichoke was also introduced.

1682 - Fort Médoc

In order to protect the kingdom, Louis XIV entrusted Sebastien Le Prestre de Vauban (the king's engineer and then general commissioner of fortifications) with the task of protecting the kingdom. He worked prodigiously to surround the kingdom with a belt of fortifications. To protect the estuary, he built three fortified sites: the citadel at Blaye, the island fort at Pâté and Fort Médoc at Cussac-Fort-Médoc, which has been on UNESCO's World Heritage List since 2008.

1700 - The wine trade with London

English merchants returned to the Gironde and took an interest in the quality wines, which they named New French Claret. These wines were sent to London. This trade led to the establishment of a classification of crus, with Château Margaux at the top of the list. Wine therefore played an important role and led to a speculative movement: from then on, people invested in planting and constructing buildings with cellars and vats. This phenomenon was dubbed the "planting craze" by the Intendant Claude Boucher in 1724.

1736 - The fury of planting

Many investors used their funds to speculate on new Médoc land. Vines took up more and more space in the region, and land acquisitions continued apace, giving rise to a number of "Bourdieux" or wine estates. One example is the Château du Tertre in Arsac, completed in 1736 by the architect Étienne Bussière (who was also involved in the development of today's Place de la Bourse). The owner of Château du Tertre, Mitchell, an Irish immigrant, left his heirs a very generous inheritance (more than 10 times his initial investment).

1770 - The Bordeaux Chartreuse model

Bordeaux's prominent members of parliament and merchants continued to invest in the Médoc. The merchant Barreyre was present in Bordeaux in his hotel on the Quai des Chartrons, but also owned his own estate in Macau. This was the era of the Bordeaux "chartreuse". It was a comfortable place to stay, but also a place to make wine. The living quarters are on the ground floor. The service area and cellars are located in the basement. The courtyard is U-shaped, as at La Lagune in Ludon Médoc, the Barreyre residence.

1778 - Map of Belleyme

Pierre de Belleyme was King Louis XV's engineer-geographer. He was responsible for the Belleyme map, completed in 1778. This map shows 22 windmills and 5 water mills. Mixed farming was the order of the day, so grain had to be ground. The Jalle de Mouline fed the 4 Arsac water mills (now destroyed). Royal cartography provides an invaluable insight for researchers and historians into the heritage and agricultural activity of the period.

1787 - First wine classification

Thomas Jefferson, author of the American Declaration of Independence and 3rd President of the United States, established the first wine classification. He also worked as a wine broker. His notebooks from his travels in Europe show his ability to assess wines. In 1787, he stayed in Bordeaux and drew up a list of grands crus that preceded the 1855 classification. His classification placed a quartet at the top: Margaux, Latour, Haut Brion and Lafitte.

1810-1816 - The impetus to build

The activity of the ports (Macau, Issan) intensified with the arrival of limestone from the right bank. It was used extensively to decorate the facades of estates. The great estates employed architects and landscape gardeners. Château Margaux, for example, was rebuilt by the architect Louis Combes between 1810 and 1816. The farm buildings were clearly separated from the living quarters. A neo-classical style was adopted, with its Ionic porch and pediment.

1840 - The building momentum

Equipment and techniques were also modernised, giving rise to the "Médoc-style" tiered vat room. The harvest is poured into the vats by gravity, eliminating the need to fill the vats by hand. This method was used very early on at Château Lanessan and was later widely adopted by other estates.

1850 - Bordeaux mixture against powdery mildew and downy mildew

The vineyards were affected by oidium and mildew. Alexis Millardet, professor of botany at the Bordeaux Faculty of Science, was surprised by the way the vines at Château Ducru Baucaillou looked on the roadside during a trip to the Médoc. An experiment was launched at Château Dauzac. An attempt was made to use the famous "Bordeaux mixture" of copper sulphate and lime to combat these diseases.

1853 - Leech farming

A forgotten activity was the breeding of leeches, used for medicinal purposes. In 1853, 2 million leeches were exported. They were reared in the marshes of the Gironde. The Château d'Agassac in Ludon-Médoc devoted 10 hectares to this activity. Leeches were also farmed in Labarde and Cussac-Fort-Médoc. This activity fell into disuse at the end of the 19th century.

1854 - Listen to the Gironville chronicle

Audio

1855 - Classification of grands crus

The classification was drawn up at the request of Napoleon III for the Universal Exhibition in Paris. The classification was drawn up by the wine merchants of the time. It is still in force today, with the exception of Cantemerle, which will be added to the 5th growth, and Mouton Rothschild, which will become a first growth. It includes 61 reds and 27 whites.

1860 - Laboratory for agricultural experiments

Agriculture aroused interest and the most astonishing experiments were attempted, such as at Château Sénéjac, where Alsatian salmon, Moselle crayfish and Merino sheep were reared. In a more rational way, Ferme Suzanne in Labarde has organised its activity around genuine agricultural development.

1868 - Bordeaux - Pointe de Grave railway

Parisian investors and Bordeaux notables alike were all attracted to the region and its wine estates. In 1868, the Bordeaux - Pointe de Grave railway made a major contribution to the development and dynamism of the region. The Bordeaux - Macau section was inaugurated in 1868.

1870 - The neo-Elizabethan style

The neo-Elizabethan style, reminiscent of British manor houses, appeared at Lascombes (Margaux-Cantenac), designed by the architect Garros in the 1870s and 1880s, and at Cantenac Brown (Margaux-Cantenac), designed by the architect Minvielle in 1860.

1876 - 1880 - Phylloxera, flooding and grafting of grape varieties

The Comte de la Vergne immersed the vines in a sulphocarbonate treatment in order to graft them. The technique used at Morange (Ludon-Médoc) was inadequate and had to be improved. It was in her plots at Pachan (Ludon-Médoc) that the widow Lawton tried grafting grape varieties with American plants such as Vitis Riparia, whose roots are resistant to insect bites.

Listen to the legend of the Pagodas of Biré

2017 - Changes in farming practices

2017 - Norman Foster & Fabien Pedelaborde

Norman Foster, the architect of Berlin's Reichstag and the Millau Viaduct, is working on a new layout for some of the Château Margaux's vineyard structures, in complete secrecy. The aim of the project is to improve the technical work carried out on the white grapes, but also to offer the public a reception area that is harmonious without being ostentatious. Château Marquis d'Alesme Becker has created a new showcase for its wines, with cellars that combine European classicism with an Asian architectural signature.

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