We’re in a region called the Xaintrie, overlooking the Maronne River, a tributary on the left bank of the Dordogne in Corrèze. The site backs up against the borders of the Limousin and the Auvergne; signs here say “it’s not really still the Limousin, but also not truly Auvergnate.”

The Merle family and their allies (the Veyracs, the Saint-Bauzilles, and the Rochedragons) occupied the north end of this rocky outcropping beginning sometime in the 1000s A.D. At some point, the Carbonnière and Pesteils families took up residence and added their towering donjons to the south end.