Manoir de Fourneux
ManorHidden Treasure
Manoir de Fourneux, located in Saumur (Maine-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
- Saumur, Maine-et-Loire, Pays de la Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00109340
A discreet 18th-century gem on the outskirts of Saumur, the Manoir de Fourneux embodies the understated elegance of the Loire Valley’s classical style, with its pale tuffeau stone and refined proportions typical of the Anjou way of life.
History
Nestling in the gentle landscape of the Saumur region, the Manoir de Fourneux embodies the provincial aristocratic tradition that, in the 18th century, preferred measured grace to ostentatious pomp. Listed as a Historic Monument since 1971, it bears witness to the quality of architecture that local landowners and hobgoblins cultivated with care, far from the grand courts but with a keen sense of proportion and decoration. The first thing that strikes you is the harmony of the whole: a streamlined residence, with facades ordered according to classical canons, bathed in golden light according to the time of day by tufa stone - the chalky limestone so characteristic of the Loire Valley. Tuffeau, the material of choice for builders in Anjou and Touraine since the Middle Ages, gives the manor house a warm, blond hue that blends into the landscape while giving it an undeniable presence. A visit to the Manoir de Fourneux is an experience of intimate architecture on a human scale. Unlike the châteaux of the Loire Valley, which impose their monumentality, Fourneux invites visitors to contemplate the details carefully: moulded cornices, meticulous window surrounds, Mansard-style roofs or long-sloped roofs in keeping with regional tradition. Visitors sensitive to the civil architecture of the late Grand Siècle will find much to marvel at here. The natural setting enhances the atmosphere: the manor house is set in a landscape of hedged farmland and vineyards, a reminder that the Saumur region is above all a land of culture and the art of living. The immediate surroundings offer rural perspectives that have hardly changed since the 18th century, making Fourneux an almost intact testimony to a certain enlightened rural France.
Architecture
The manor house at Fourneux belongs to the tradition of classical manor houses in the Saumur region, an architectural style that flourished throughout the Loire Valley in the 18th century. The main facade, facing an open space - a courtyard of honour or simplified formal garden - features a characteristic symmetrical composition: a central main building with evenly-spaced small-paned windows, punctuated by an odd number of bays in the classical French tradition. The materials used are those of the region: tufa stone for the load-bearing walls and decorative elements, slate schist for the roof, a typical Anjou colour scheme combining the warm blond of the stone with the bluish grey of the slate. The architectural details reveal the hand of a skilled master builder, familiar with the architectural treatises published from Paris in the 18th century: horizontal bands highlighting the levels, modillioned cornices crowning the façades, moulded frames for the openings. Dormers with straight or arched pediments pierce the roof with elegance, bringing light and dynamism to the whole. The outbuildings, essential to any rural estate of this standing, complete the ensemble in an orderly, functional manner. Inside, the layout meets the requirements of 18th-century provincial noble life: a corridor or central hall leads to the reception rooms on the ground floor - drawing room, dining room - and the bedrooms upstairs. Painted wood panelling, sculpted tufa fireplaces and oak floors make up the characteristic interior décor of these Anjou homes, where the care taken with the finishing touches bears witness to a constant quest for comfort and elegance.
Related Figures
Propriétaire bâtisseur du XVIIIe siècle (non identifié), commanditaire de la construction actuelleMaître maçon ou entrepreneur local, vraisemblablement formé à l'école des bâtisseurs saumurois du XVIIIe siècleFamilles bourgeoises et nobiliaires du Saumurois, successeurs du domaine aux XIXe et XXe sièclesInspecteur des Monuments Historiques ayant instruit le dossier d'inscription en 1971
Map
Coordinates not available for this monument.
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Manoir de Fourneux located?
Manoir de Fourneux is located in Saumur, Maine-et-Loire department, Pays de la Loire region, France.
When was Manoir de Fourneux built?
Manoir de Fourneux dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Manoir de Fourneux open to visitors?
Manoir de Fourneux is currently closed to visitors.