Philipe Du Plessis wrote a letter to Arnold I, abbot of Cîteaux, describing damage at Chastel Blanc caused by the 1202 CE earthquake. In this letter, he wrote that “at Chastel Blanc most of the walls collapsed, and the main tower—thought to have been built with outstanding strength and solidity—was so badly cracked and damaged that it would have been better for us if it had completely collapsed instead of being left standing in such a state.” Robert of Auxerre wrote that “most of the ramparts and towers of Chastel-Blanc were thrown to the ground,” while Ibn al-Latif al-Baghdadi produced a letter stating that Chastel Blanc was “swallowed up.”