Logis de Beauregard
MonumentHidden Treasure
Logis de Beauregard, located in Longué-Jumelles (Maine-et-Loire), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Longué-Jumelles, Maine-et-Loire, Pays de la Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.4339, -0.0643
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00109451
An elegant 16th-century Renaissance residence nestled in the heart of Anjou, the Beauregard in Longué-Jumelles captivates visitors with its ornate mullions and the refined simplicity of its white tuffeau stone architecture.
History
In the heart of Maine-et-Loire, between the Loire and Thouet valleys, the Logis de Beauregard stands as a discreet but eloquent testimony to the architectural vitality of Renaissance Anjou. Listed as a Historic Monument in 1992, this 16th-century seigniorial dwelling is a marvellous embodiment of the art of living of a provincial nobility concerned with elegance without ostentation, preferring graceful proportions to the excessiveness of the great châteaux of the Loire Valley. What sets the Logis de Beauregard apart is above all the quality of its tuffeau, the soft white limestone so characteristic of Anjou, which local stonemasons worked with remarkable precision. The façades bear clear traces of the French Renaissance: mullioned windows, sculpted dormer windows, delicately profiled cornices - all elements that show the building to be part of an Anjou architectural tradition that was flourishing under the influence of the royal building sites on the Loire. Visiting the Logis de Beauregard is like stepping off the beaten tourist track and rediscovering an authentic heritage, preserved in its original state, without the sometimes artificial staging of grand residences. The building is in natural dialogue with its rural surroundings and the gentle undulations of the Anjou bocage, offering architecture lovers a direct, unfiltered view of the seigniorial buildings of the Renaissance. The green setting of Longué-Jumelles, a Saumur commune renowned for its flower nurseries and bocage landscapes, adds a bucolic dimension to the visit. Just a few kilometres from Saumur and its famous tufa stone cellars, Beauregard is part of a rich region, where history is evident at every turn of the road.
Architecture
The Logis de Beauregard belongs to the tradition of the seigneurial dwellings of Renaissance Anjou, characterised by a massed rectangular floor plan, a two-storey main building topped by an attic storey lit by sculpted dormer windows, and facades of carefully-cut white Touraine tufa. This lacustrine limestone, extracted from underground quarries in the Saumur region, gives the building the luminous creamy hue so typical of Loire residences. The facades are very probably typical of 16th-century French residential architecture: stone mullioned windows framed by simple mouldings, dormers with sculpted pediments adorning the steeply pitched roof, ashlar quoins and a modillion cornice marking the levels. The roof, probably made of Anjou slate - a favourite material in the region since the Middle Ages - forms a slender silhouette that perfectly matches the proportions of the main building. The interior layout reflects the comfort standards of the provincial Renaissance: a barrel-vaulted or cross-vaulted lower hall, an internal spiral or straight staircase leading to the upper floors, and reception rooms facing the countryside. The ensemble is a coherent and precious example of Angevin civil architecture, halfway between the rigour of the Middle Ages and the ornamental grace of the Renaissance.
Related Figures
Seigneur fondateur anonyme du XVIe siècle — commanditaire probable de l'édifice sous François Ier ou Henri IIFamilles seigneuriales saumuroises successives — propriétaires aux XVIIe et XVIIIe sièclesInspecteurs des Monuments Historiques (Direction Régionale des Affaires Culturelles des Pays de la Loire) — acteurs de l'inscription de 1992
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Logis de Beauregard located?
Logis de Beauregard is located in Longué-Jumelles, Maine-et-Loire department, Pays de la Loire region, France.
When was Logis de Beauregard built?
Logis de Beauregard dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Logis de Beauregard open to visitors?
Logis de Beauregard is currently closed to visitors.