Château de Matha in Charente-Maritime represents centuries of regional history, with origins tracing to the 9th century when Count Wulgrin of Angoulême built the first motte castle around 866. The castle passed through notable historical hands, including those of King Saint Louis, who razed it in 1242, and later Anne of Austria, who resided there in 1621 during the siege of Saint-Jean-d'Angély. Today, only the Renaissance-style keep survives, built around 1582-1587, featuring two towers crowned with crenellations and machicolations, topped with high slate roofs and decorated with sculpted pediments. Registered as a historic monument since 1948 with façades and roofs classified in 1952, it stands as an important testimony to both medieval and Renaissance military architecture in southwestern France.
