The hydrangeas are slowly turning pink at the end of summer, while the greens are endless. You won’t see the interior of Figon, which is not open to the public. Its architecture, unique in Haute-Loire, contributes to the charm of the place. Inspired by Italy, it was built by an ancestor of Guy Henry de Fraix de Figon, one of the owners, after his Grand Tour in 1832. “He made his dream come true, both for the château and the park,” observes Guy Henry de Fraix de Figon. On the other hand, there is not much left of the first château, located a few meters away.
We come here for the outdoors: over 8 hectares, the park and gardens, enclosed by a continuous dry stone wall, occupy a varied landscape, a mixture of wide clearings, valleys, piles of large granite rocks and rare openings to the outside.
The highlight is the one-hectare “Tree Hall”, created at the time of the League: a walk with an old-fashioned tranquility, planted with sycamores, oaks and beeches. So much so that “you feel like you’re passing through a space-time door, which transports you to another time”, confides the owner of the place. The trees are equidistant from 7.20 meters, the first planted at the end of the 16th century. “It’s the emblematic element of the castle”, observes the owner. We replace the trees regularly, in addition to pruning them.
The French garden with its pond created in the 18th century, contributes to the ancestral atmosphere of the place. “In the 19th century, several successive generations of enlightened foresters will strive to embellish what will become the Figon park, designed in the English style, combining very old native trees (lime trees, beeches, oaks, chestnut trees, etc.) with the first acclimatizations of spruces, Douglas firs, larches and Wellingtonias (sequoias) in Haute-Loire”, underlines the owner.The Tree Room, a highlight of the visit to the exterior of the castle.
It is home to extraordinary trees: tulip trees from Virginia, Louisiana bald cypresses, araucarias, New Orleans catalpa and Canadian orange azaleas. The largest sequoia is 50 metres high and more than 8 metres in circumference. Figon Park has also been awarded the Remarkable Tree Ensemble label. Near the park, the Gros Roule, an oak tree 5 metres in circumference and planted in 1613, was awarded the “Remarkable Tree of France” label in 2021.
A file is now being processed to have the castle classified as a Historic Monument. “It deserves it?! This classification is also a way of maintaining heritage,” emphasizes Guy Henry de Fraix de Figon. “I was born in Figon,” he says to demonstrate his attachment to the family property. The former engineer, who spent a large part of his career abroad, is passionate about history and archives.
“Each generation of my family has been extremely attached to the place and has contributed something. We are the heirs but above all the successors. We are continuing a mission with the objective of transmission. A classification of the site can help us with this,” he concludes. A French garden, it adorned the first castle
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