Château d’Yquem
Some History – 1154-1453

Yquem once belonged to Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine, the property being just part of her extensive holdings. It was brought under the dominion of the French crown in 1137 by her marriage to Prince Louis Capet, soon to be King Louis VII of France.

This marriage lasted fifteen years, ending with an annulment by Pope Eugène III on the grounds of adultery. This left Eleanor free to marry Henri Plantagenet, who became King Henry II of England in 1154. And so Chateau d’Yquem was, until the end of the Hundred Years War in 1453, a most royal and British estate.

Back under French control, Chateau d'Yquem came into the hands of the Sauvage d'Eyquem family in 1593, who had sole ownership until the 18th Century. During their tenure they oversaw extensive modifications to the Medieval structure, adding suitable fortifications and a chapel wing in the 16th Century, and a north wing containing the main reception rooms in the 17th Century.

It was also during this time that the reputation of the wine of Chateau d’Yquem was established. In 1785 they teamed up with the Lur-Saluces family of Chateau de Fargues, the two clans brought together by the marriage of Françoise Josephine de Sauvage with Comte Louis Amédée de Lur-Saluces.

As with all such grand families the French Revolution in the late 18th Century saw them lose everything, although in this case not their heads. And so Françoise Josephine was later able to regain control of what had been taken away.

She continued to build up the estate, and was responsible for the construction of a new wine cellar in 1826. When she died in 1851 her son, Marquis Antoine-Marie de Lur-Saluces, inherited the estate. He married Marie-Geneviève, the daughter of Gabriel-Barthélémy-Romain de Filhot and owner of Chateaux Filhot & Coutet.

Chateau d’Yquem was included in the 1855 classification of Sauternes and Barsac, sitting in a dominant position in its own private ranking of Premier Cru Supérieur. At this time the wines of Chateau d’Yquem were selling at prices several times more valuable as those of its neighbours.