A large part of Excideuil's history is identical with that of its castle - The latter was built up by the viscounts of Limoges, who, as far back as the 11th and 12th century, replaced the wooden tower - perhaps erected during the Norman invasions - by ramparts and a stone-keep.  From the 11th century to the 16th century, the castle remained in the possession of the viscounts of Limoges who used it as a base in their fight with the count of Périgord. But this so envied military stronghold was also the scene of hard battles, especially the one which opposed the Haute-Aquitaine knighthood to the Plantagenets, who had become the region's suzerains since Alienor's marriage with HENRI II (1152). Three times during the year of 1182 Richard the Lion Heart and his lieutenants laid siege to the castle. The borough was plundered twice, but the castle held out against all the attacks. On the other hand, during the one hundred years war, it did not have the same luck. In 1346, the English attacks were repulsed but in 1351 the castle was besieged by the enemy. Taken up again in 1356, it was handed over to the English and then released again thanks to Du Guesclin or his lieutenants backed up by the barons of Limousin. Unhappily for the inhabitants of Excideuil these fights were far from being the last. During the religious wars the castle, which then belonged to Jeanne d'ALBRET, Queen of Navarre, owned a catholic garnison. It was attacked during the autumn of 1574 and taken up by the Huguenots soldiers, but it was a short lived victory for the next spring it fell again into the catholic hands owing to the Messieurs de Hautefort who for this feat received HENRI III's congratulations.  After his mothers' death, Henri took the title of « King of Navarre », but in order to face all his monetary needs, he had to alienate several seigniories of the viscounty. So on the 23^rd of March 1582, in presence of a lawyer from Poitiers, he let count François des Cars have Excideuil Castle and the seigniorie (150.000 livres worth). He than became the successor of the viscounts of Limoges. Having become the owner of the castle thanks to his wife's dowry, the count des Cars changed the severe military building into a sumptuous residence which was plundered several times, but this was quickly restored owing to François's fortune. The daughter of the countess Des Cars married Daniel de Talleyrand, prince of Chalais (Charente), a very favoured man in the courts eye, which permitted to the Excideuil estate to be established in marquisate (1613). Unhappily for the Talleyrands, kept at court by their duties, they only made a few appearances at Excideuil’s castle. The most beautiful furniture and also the statues and the chimney-pieces were removed to their house in Chalais. Regarding the buildings they were left to ruin little by little. Under the revolution the patriots of Excideuil made some token gestures which had no consequence from the material point of view. But for several years already life had been diminishing little by little from the castle.