Moulin à vent de Plussin
MonumentHidden Treasure
Moulin à vent de Plussin, located in Savennières (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
- Savennières, Maine-et-Loire, Pays de la Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.3967, -0.6701
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00109351
The Plussin windmill, a stone sentinel standing on the heights of Savennières, has watched over the vineyards of the Loire Valley for centuries. Its sober, robust architecture, typical of Anjou mills, is a rare example of the Loire's millstone heritage.
History
Perched on the hillsides overlooking the south bank of the Loire, the Plussin windmill is one of the last remaining examples of Savennières' agricultural and industrial past. In this village famous for its exceptional dry white wines, the windmill stands out as an unexpected landscape landmark, contrasting with the tightly packed rows of vines and the golden tuff of the old cellars. Its distinctive silhouette, a round tower with compact masonry, instantly evokes the pivot or tower mills so common in Anjou between the late Middle Ages and the 19th century. What makes the Moulin de Plussin so special is first and foremost its location in a world-renowned wine-growing area. Savennières, renowned for its white chenins with a rare minerality, is not the setting that people spontaneously associate with the millstone industry - and yet the cereals from the neighbouring plateaux fed these structures long before vines definitively conquered the landscape. The mill is therefore a reminder of a form of mixed farming that has now disappeared. The experience of visiting the mill, even from the outside, is striking. From the path that runs alongside the mill, visitors enjoy a panoramic view of the Loire and its wooded islands, the slate quarries on the Anjou riverbank and the gentle curves of the royal river. The late afternoon light, typical of the Loire Valley, bathes the tower in a warm hue that reveals the grain of the stone. Listed as a historic monument since 1975, the Plussin mill benefits from protection that guarantees the preservation of its volumes and its integration into the landscape. It's an ideal stop-off point for lovers of vernacular heritage and wine tourism in the Savennières vineyards, just a few kilometres from Angers.
Architecture
The Plussin mill has the typical features of the tower mills of Anjou: a cylindrical tower with a slightly splayed base, built of slate and tufa rubble, the dominant materials in rural construction in the Loire Valley. The thick walls - often in the region of 80 centimetres to one metre - ensured both resistance to the mechanical forces transmitted by the wings and good thermal insulation to protect the milling mechanism. The typical height of these towers is between eight and twelve metres, giving them a strong visual presence in the landscape. The interior of the tower was organised on several levels linked by an internal staircase or miller's ladder: the ground floor for the flour and sack, the middle level for the sandstone millstones - generally imported from La Ferté-sous-Jouarre or sourced locally - and the upper level for the drive shaft and the oak gears. The conical cap, which has now disappeared or been severely altered, as is the case with most abandoned mills, was made of shingled or tiled roof timbers and allowed the four canvas-lined wings to be oriented. The sober ornamentation of the mill, devoid of any superfluous decoration, is typical of Anjou vernacular architecture: the beauty of the building lies in its proportions, in the texture of the local stone and in the harmony of its integration into the landscape, without seeking to rival the architectural elegance of neighbouring châteaux or manor houses.
Related Figures
Les meuniers successifs de Plussin (XVIIe-XIXe siècle), artisans du ravitaillement en farine du vignoble et des villages environnantsLes seigneurs de Savennières, propriétaires fonciers des coteaux sur lesquels le moulin était érigéLes inspecteurs des Monuments Historiques (DRAC Pays de la Loire) ayant instruit le dossier de protection en 1975Nicolas Joly, vigneron emblématique de Savennières, défenseur du paysage viticole dans lequel s'inscrit le moulinLes bâtisseurs anonymes du XVIIe ou XVIIIe siècle, maçons angevins maîtrisant la technique de construction en tour cylindrique
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Moulin à vent de Plussin located?
Moulin à vent de Plussin is located in Savennières, Maine-et-Loire department, Pays de la Loire region, France.
When was Moulin à vent de Plussin built?
Moulin à vent de Plussin dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Moulin à vent de Plussin open to visitors?
Moulin à vent de Plussin is currently closed to visitors.