EMPIRE BALL AT THE CHATEAU GASSIES

The Bordeaux region is home to many castles, including that of Gassies, on the Latresne wine route, a few kilometers from the metropolis.

In order to bring all these buildings back to life, a Carboblanese association has decided to make history known through fashion and dance. To achieve this, « Bal d’antan, Un pas dans l’histoire » offers entertainment, historical re-enactments in costumes, courses and internships as well as dance and sewing workshops. In period costumes, participants can share waltzes, quadrilles, polkas and other historical dances.

Out of time events

Last year, on October 19, 2022, the Bordeaux Opera presented its « Costume Ball in Vienna » in the Second Empire Grand Salon, in period clothes: crinoline dresses for women, embroidered jackets for men. This evening was organized in partnership with the Aquitaine workshops and the dance initiation workshops. The association also organized a « Roaring Twenties » evening.

On April 8, a costume ball was held at the Château Gassies in Latresne, on the theme « Chronicle of the Bridgertons », inspired by the American television series. This time, the Empire was in the spotlight, at the time of the Regency in England at the beginning of the 19th century. The story of the evening was based on the story of 8 brothers and sisters, close to the Bridgerton family, trying to find love.

The women wore dresses with train, balloon sleeves, high waist in silk and associated with small short jackets in the same tones. For their part, the men were dressed in a spencer or a woolen frock coat, associated with silk stockings. Others wore the uniform of hussars, frogged jackets and shako, a high helmet surmounted by a plume.

Gassies Castle

The Maison des Gassies, known as La Tour de Gassies, has existed since the 14th century. She belonged to a line of Bordeaux bourgeois, affiliated with the great families of the Gironde.

In 1135, Jean Grassies, draper and parishioner of Ste Colombe in Bordeaux, bought land at Latresne in the locality of St Julien. In the 15th century, the family held the positions of provost and mayor in Bordeaux before being ennobled at the end of the century, having gone through the period of the Hundred Years War without problems.
In the 16th century, the house of Gassies united with the noble family of Gères, lords of Camarsac. The great-granddaughters inherited the estate 2 centuries later, but only one of them, Catherine Cabiro de la Salle, became mistress in 1718. Without an heir, she bequeathed her land to her grand-nephew and godson, the Captain and Knight of the Royal Order of St Louis, Jean-Joseph de Borie. he had the current castle built on the foundations of that of the 17th century in the classic style of the 18th century with 2 square pavilions which oppose the rounded central avant-corps. Outbuildings were built on each side of the facade of the mansion in the form of 2 parallel wings (the cellars and vat rooms to the south in 1857; the stables, courtyards, staff quarters and an orangery in 1899 ). From the 19th to the 20th century, several owners followed one another until the 1960s when it became the acquisition of the racing driver Jean Egreteau.

Renovation

The revival of the castle began in 2014 undertaking renovation works until 2019 with the aim of welcoming receptions and guests from all over the world to share the house. The latter has a bulging facade and 5 steps; a vestibule painted light gray with a mat covering the tiling, an oval dining room hollowed out with niches and French windows. A Charles X cellar has furniture and exposed beams whose history dates back to the 18th century. A 14 ha park with formal gardens and 300 year old cedars of Lebanon surrounds the castle.

Benefits

The castle offers the organization of weddings, seminars or other events thanks to its premises:

*The 190 m² freestone reception room adorned with period chandeliers and mirrors can accommodate 150 guests in the outbuildings.
*The orangery can accommodate the children’s dinner or a small committee dinner the day before the wedding.
*The 2 large courtyards can host the cocktail party or the ceremony during bad weather or heat waves.
*The west terrace which overlooks Bordeaux and the Garonne valley can offer a cocktail facing the setting sun and the cedar of Lebanon which dominates the park.
*5 guest rooms and 3 gîtes can accommodate up to 43 people on site.
*Sauna, hammam, fitness room, massage parlour, THEMAE Spa, swimming pool and tennis court are accessible the day after the wedding, before or after the brunch.
*Large playground for children.
*Petanque

The association

The association « Bal d’Antan, A step in history » was created in 2022 in Carbo-Blanc, near Bordeaux. Its purpose is to discover the historical world through dance and fashion. It organizes events, historical re-enactments, courses, courses and workshops in dance (learning to waltz and other ancient dances) and sewing (making clothes for re-enactments or making alterations).

Bal d’Antan, A step in history!
Ms Marie Colombier
16 Kennedy Place
33560 Carbo-White

CASTLE GASSIES
26 Brown Street
33360 Latresne
Tel: +33 (0)5 56 68 23 78
Tel Weddings and Events: +33 (0)6 48 45 57 13
Tel Gîte and bed and breakfast: +33 (0)6 33 76 58 03
Website: https//www.chateaugrassies.com/

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VERONIQUE YANG

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