The chateau at Aubigny

Hands up who has heard of Aubigny-sur-Nere. As I thought, absolutely no-one. Which is good news for visitors to this blog, because you will be among the first to discover a lost historical jewel. Aubigny is in a forgotten corner of central France and its claim to fame is simple: for 250 years it belonged to the Scots. In 1419 the future King Charles VII -- at that time still a beleaguered dauphin -- invoked France's century-old alliance with Scotland to help kick out the English. John Stuart of Darnley, cousin of the Scottish king, arrived with several thousand men at La Rochelle and in 1421 scored a signal victory over the Duke of Clarence at the battle of Bauge. He led the French army for eight more years before dying outside Orleans. Joan of Arc then picked up the baton. To reward him for his services, Charles gave John Stuart the fiefdom of Aubigny, which stayed in the Stuart family till the end of the 17th century. And the story doesn't end there because at this point King Charles II, himself a Stuart via his grandfather King James, claims Aubigny for his own. Louis XIV demurs but instead grants it to Charles's mistress, the courtesan Louise de Keroualle. She had been sent over by the Sun King to seduce Charles and was the conduit for French funds secretly made over to the English crown to keep it out of France's European wars. Louise was hated by the English but adored by Charles who made her Duchess of Portsmouth, and their illegitimate children started the line of Dukes of Richmond and Lennox. There is an Irish connection here because a century later the aristocratic patriot and rebel Lord Edward Fitzgerald spent part of his childhood at Aubigny. He was later executed by the Brits after the failure of the 1798 uprising. Princess Diana was also a descendant of Louise de Keroualle. There. Dpon't say you don't learn anything new when you visit the Champs-Elysees website.
What is left of the Scottish connection in Aubigny is not a great deal, it must be admitted. The museum is a joke (tailors' dummies in mediaeval dress and a CD recording of the local "ghost" retelling the story). But it is a lovely spot for all that. The 16th century castle is now the town hall, and Louise de Keroualle's gardens extend to one side. The mayor Yves Fromion has sensibly realised that the Scottish connection -- long forgotten -- can put the town back on the map. It is twinned with Haddington and its July 14 festivities every year are now billed as the Fetes Franco-Ecossaises. Haggis was on the menu for the open-air banquet last week and I am pleased to say that -- President Chirac's recent remarks notwithstanding -- locals were actually enjoying it.