Melusine: the builder fairy

Raymondin hurried to agree, and so Melusine drew the outline of the fiefdom she would give to him on the ground, which was Lusignan.
Within a few nights, she had built a fortress worthy of his status, which has remained in collective memory as one the largest castles ever built in France.

The couple lived happily together and had 10 sons. Each one had a monstrous trait, but they would all have a great destiny.

Geoffroy Long-Tooth, their sixth son, was born with a boar's tusk protruding from his mouth. He was renowned for his ferocity during the Crusades. Rabelais identified him as an ancestor of his character, Pantagruel.
Today, his statue stands on the site of the old fortress.

However, one Saturday night, Raymondin, urged on by his brother, couldn't stand it anymore. He spied on his wife and discovered her true nature: a serpent woman.
The fairy immediately flew out one of the castle's windows and disappeared from Raymondin's life forever.

The memory of Melusine remains etched into the fabric of Lusignan. The city's inhabitants are called Melusins (men) and Melusines (women).
Effigies of the fairy can be found in many places in the city, like here at the tourism center, located in the old fortress' outer bailey.

The town of Lusignan and its pastry chefs have seized upon the myth. Pastries in the shape of Melusine, with her serpent tail, have been made since very early on in the town's history. The pastry therefore played a large role in perpetuating Melusine's myth.

The castle was destroyed on the orders of King Henry III in the 16th century, during the Wars of Religion.
Only this postern and the remains of the Melusine tower remain today.

According to tradition, the Château de Marmande is one of the fairy's works.
According to the legend, after Melusine built the tower in one night, she would return every night afterwards to climb one of its 365 steps. She would fly off its peak on December 31st before starting the process again on January 1st.

In reality, the watchtower was built in the 14th century and has 165 steps. At 115 feet (35 m) high, it dominates the landscape at the borders of Poitou, Touraine, and Anjou, which made it possible to watch enemies as they arrived during the many conflicts that characterized the area.

The Château de Marmande also has a large network of underground passages, allowing the estate's inhabitants to take shelter in case of attacks. Their walls are covered in graffiti, as are the gate tower's walls, which are decorated with knights ready for jousting.

The château was transformed into an agricultural area in the 19th century.
Véronique Kleiner, the current owner, wants to preserve the place's memory. She has undertaken numerous restoration projects with the support of the Fondation du patrimoine (French Heritage Foundation).
The Melusine tower will therefore receive a new roof.

The Château de Montreuil-Bonnin was also built by Melusine.
According to the legend, the fairy had it built in memory of one of her sons. She had him suffocated to prevent him from harming those around him.
Her son, who only had one enormous eye in the middle of his forehead, was nicknamed Monstre-en-œil (Monster Eye) and gave his name to the Château de Montreuil-Bonnin.

The château, built in the 11th century, came into the possession of Eleanor of Aquitaine and then Richard the Lionheart. He established one of the most significant coin production workshops of the Middle Ages there, which kept operating when the château was returned to the French crown in 1204.

One of the structures that is most emblematic of Melusine is the Saint-Nicolas tower in La Rochelle. She built it in one night, having taken the required stones from one of her husband's construction sites.
The people of La Rochelle called it the Melusine Tower until the 18th century.