More than 10,000 people have pitched in to become co-owners and save a castle from ruin

Chateau de la Mothe-Chandeniers has seen better days. The French castle was built in the 13th century and has had a rich history. In 2017, however, the castle is not quite so grand. Its structure is crumbling and it is overgrown with plants. But, thousands of strangers have pitched in to save the castle from ruin.

The company Dartagnans and Adopte un château teamed up to launch a crowd-funding campaign offering people who made donations of at least $59 a once-in-a-lifetime kind of opportunity. By making a donation, you could become a co-owner of this castle. Your money will be used to restore the castle, preserving its historical integrity, and eventually allow for the property to be open to the public.

The crowd-funding website states, “Each donor will become a share-holder and therefore a co-owner of the castle. We are willing to create a dedicated platform that will allow each owner to follow the progress of the work, the events, the project offers and to build a real collaborative and participatory project. Transforming an abandoned ruin into a collective work is the best way to protect it in the long-term.”

Chateau de la Mothe-Chandeniers is located in the Les Trois-Moutiers in the Poitou-Charentes region of France. According to frenchchateau.net, the property is a former stronghold of the Bauçay family. Since, it’s changed owners several times and in 1932, the insides were mostly destroyed by a fire.

And yet, it’s still a thing of beauty.

Now, a donation doesn’t mean you have the right to drop in to visit the castle whenever you like (wouldn’t that be cool, though!) But you will have a say in the restoration process and receive updates about the castle along the way. Plus, you’ll get to know that you protected a piece of history. And yes, you’ll have all of the bragging rights that comes along with be a castle co-owner, too.

The founder of Dartagnans told The Guardian this project is definitely about the bigger picture.

“The idea is not just about raising the money, but getting as many people as possible to participate in saving this magical, fairytale place,” he said. “The more the merrier.”

At the time of publication, the project had 11,585 supporters and they reached their goal of raising enough money to purchase the property. However, there’s still time to donate because now they’re looking to raise more than $500,000 to use to restore the property.

The crowd-finding expires on Dec. 25. So if you’d like to own a castle—be sure to donate by then!