Château Nenin: The Modern Era
Château Nenin began the 20th century in the hands of the Despujol family, in particular Maurice Despujol (as Pierre Emmanuel Maurice was known). In 1894 he and his wife Marie (as Marguerite Marie was known) had a son who they christened Etienne Pierre Emmanuel Despujol (1894 – 1973). He was generally known as Emmanuel, and he subsequently inherited the estate from his father; in 1919 he married Marie-Louise Valérie Simone Ollivier, and they had at least four children.
Of these two were daughters, Janine (born 1920) and Monique (1922 – 1997), and there were two sons; the first born, Daniel (1924 – 1945) was killed in action during World War II, and was awarded the Croix de Guerre. That left just the other son, François Despujol (born 1934) to eventually inherit the property, which he did upon the death of his father Emmanuel. This did not come about, however, until the early 1970s.
The Despujol Era
The tenure of the Despujol family through the 20th century does not seem to be a highly regarded one, certainly when compared to the reputation enjoyed by the estate in the early years of the century, as espoused by the authors of contemporary editions of Cocks et Féret.
