Manoir de Chérizy
ManorHidden Treasure
Manoir de Chérizy, located in Joué-lès-Tours (Indre-et-Loire), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Manor
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Joué-lès-Tours, Indre-et-Loire, Centre-Val de Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.3567, 0.6899
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00097790
Nestling on the outskirts of Tours, the Chérizy manor house is a blend of late 15th-century Gothic elegance and discreet 18th-century extension, like a stone story frozen in the gentle beauty of the Touraine countryside.
© Wikimedia Commons
History
On the outskirts of Joué-lès-Tours, where rural Touraine is gradually disappearing in the face of urban development, the Chérizy manor house paints a picture of rare sobriety. Its long main building, divided into two distinct parts by a median roundel on the roof, embodies the patient continuity of vernacular architecture that refused to let itself be altered by the centuries. Listed as a Historic Monument in 1972, the ensemble bears witness to the persistence of a building style that is unique to the Loire Valley, combining economy of means with a keen sense of proportion. What distinguishes Chérizy from the countless other manor houses in Touraine is precisely this duality, which is clearly visible to the naked eye: on the one hand, the northern, authentic mass of the medieval part, with its Gothic proportions and the still perceptible trace of its old spiral staircase tower; on the other, the sober, respectful response of the 18th century, which extended the building identically without seeking to eclipse it. This dialogue between two eras three hundred years apart offers a lesson in reasoned architecture that has rarely been so explicit. The tour reveals the happy scars of time: the stairwell surrounded by half-timbering on the first floor evokes the carpenters of yesteryear, while the openings redesigned in the 18th century imposed a new regularity on the façades, softening the tormented character of the flamboyant Gothic style. To the west, perpendicular to the dwelling, the barn flanked by a stone tower jutting out from the surrounding wall is a reminder that this manor house was first and foremost a living, agricultural and self-sufficient estate. The Touraine setting enhances the discreet charm of the ensemble. The soft light of the Loire Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage site, envelops Chérizy in an atmosphere conducive to architectural meditation. For the curious visitor, the building offers the rare image of a manor house that has never tried to impose itself, preferring moderation to ostentation - a very Touraine quality after all.
Architecture
Chérizy manor house features an elongated rectangular main building, the main feature of which is that it is the sum of two construction campaigns separated by three centuries. The junction between the two parts - one medieval to the north, the other eighteenth-century to the south - is discreetly marked by a rondelis (small dormer window or connecting roof element) in the middle of the roof, the only external indication of this temporal duality. The eighteenth-century builders' desire for uniformity is so pronounced that the two parts appear at first glance to be a coherent whole, demonstrating a remarkable respect for the existing structure. On the east side, the medieval section reveals the recessed trace of the former spiral staircase tower, which was removed during the 18th-century extension. On the first floor, the new straight wooden staircase is framed by timber-framed walls, a construction technique with an exposed framework typical of rural Touraine. The facades, remodelled in the 18th century, feature regularised bays in the classical style. Perpendicular to the dwelling, a barn flanked by a stone tower jutting out from the surrounding wall completes the building complex, underlining the estate's agricultural vocation. Tuffeau, the soft, luminous limestone typical of the Loire Valley, is thought to have been used for the noble parts, while the outbuildings probably use stone and wood in accordance with local building traditions.
Related Figures
Propriétaires médiévaux du XVe siècle (identité non établie), commanditaires de la partie gothiquePropriétaire du XVIIIe siècle, maître d'ouvrage de l'extension et des remaniementsFamille ayant donné le nom de Chérizy à la demeure en 1940Administrateurs des Monuments Historiques ayant instruit l'inscription de 1972
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Manoir de Chérizy located?
Manoir de Chérizy is located in Joué-lès-Tours, Indre-et-Loire department, Centre-Val de Loire region, France.
When was Manoir de Chérizy built?
Manoir de Chérizy dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Manoir de Chérizy open to visitors?
Manoir de Chérizy is currently closed to visitors.