There can’t be many construction sites in the world where quarrymen hew rocks out of the ground with hammers and chisels, where builders wear woollen smocks, where measurements are taken in cubits, and where raw materials are moved around by horse and cart. But then Guédelon castle is no ordinary construction site. 

Deep in a forest in northern Burgundy, just over 100 miles south of Paris, this is a building project like nothing else you’ll witness. Using only medieval construction methods and medieval-style tools, a team of 16 stonemasons, seven carpenters, four blacksmiths, three lumberjacks, three carters, a tiler, a potter and various other craftsmen and -women are building a 13th-century castle entirely by hand. No electric tools, no cranes and no lorries, with virtually all materials sourced on site. 

But there’s another crucial difference between Guédelon and a modern construction site: here, visitors are encouraged to interact with the builders while they work. The growing castle attracts about 300,000 visitors a year, bringing in €5m annually, which finances the entire project.

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