\paperw4260 \margr0\margl0 \plain \qj\li105\ri195 \f1 \b CHATEAU DE LA BREDE\par
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\b0 Originally a feudal castle, whose thirteenth-century defensive works of moats, keeps,
and watch turrets still survive, La BrΦde was radically modified by its lord, Charles-Louis de Secondat, baron de Montesquieu (1699-1788). Writer, politician, great traveler, and shrewd landowner, he beautified the old building in which he had been born.
He surrounded the castle with trees and beautiful parks in the English style and turned it into a comfortable place to live and work, with a large drawing room, bedroom, and library containing 7000 volumes.\par
