Castles for sale Ernée, France

A chateau, its outbuildings and grounds in Fougères. Off a country road, a wrought-iron gate opens onto a long avenue lined with century-old plane trees. The chateau stands at the top of a slope in the centre of its wooded grounds. The numerous outbuildings, vegetable garden and orchard are to the north. A small chapel dominates the grounds to the east. Two caretaker's houses have been built at the north and south ends of the grounds.

Rennes, Vitré, Ille et Vilaine, 35, this 19th century castle in a neo-Gothic style, with its 3 levels and convertible attic is very well located in the countryside and close to large cities.

In the Pays de la Loire region, 15 minutes from Laval, on over 16 ha, a striking 18th century listed castle, fully restored. A long driveway, bordered by trees and crossing the parkland’s grasslands and woods, leads from the village to the property. Entrance gates open on to a very wide courtyard, partially surrounded by a dry moat and laid out in front of the chateau’s regular, elegant facade. The outbuildings, set out around the courtyard, comprise stables, a dovecote, pigsties, a barn, a small corner pavilion, a caretaker’s cottage and, lastly, a chapel. A central parterre, displaying its original design, takes up a large section of the courtyard in front of the chateau. A copse of very old trees stands to one side. A regular, terraced, back garden, reached via granite steps, looks down on to the rear of the chateau. The first castle dated from medieval times. In the 16th century, its status was raised to that of a “châtellenie” (an officially recognised castle and its land). All that remains of these eras are the dovecote, the chapel as well as the castle’s two pavilions. At the beginning of the 18th century, these two pavilions were connected by a vast building. The chateau, the outbuildings and parklands underwent major restoration works in 2010. A good number of these features are now protected with French Historic Monument listing (by order dated 13 March 1989): the chateau and the chapel; the dovecote facades and roofs; the perimeter wall with its moat and its support walls; the facades and roof of the little, 18th century corner pavilion; the garden with its fencing and its towers as well as the shelter over the central well; the wood and, lastly, the large alleyways in the parklands. Nowadays economic activities, notably linked to culture and events, are held by the current owners. But the potential of the buildings, not all actually in use, and the existing parklands which extend over a total of more than 16 hectares, make it possible to envisage other development possibilities, especially as the town of Laval is near and Paris and Rennes are within easy reach.

Ref.4176 : MAGNIFICENT LISTED CLASSIC CHATEAU 15th, 16th AND 18th C. IN MAYENNE DEPARTMENT. In the historic province of Bas-Maine, not far from Haut Anjou, this grand and sumptuous château is built in a beautiful natural setting. Just 3 km from a small market town, the surrounding countryside is cradled by the lacelets of the Vaiges, a tributary of the Sarthe. The château is within easy reach of major transport routes. The towns of Laval (TGV station, 1h15 from Paris), Château-Gontier and Sablé-sur-Sarthe (TGV station, 1h20 from Paris) are all 27 km away by car. This French window gives access to the residence, which includes : First floor: a welcoming 42 sqm vestibule, 1890 panelling, large and small 66 and 39 sqm salons, herringbone parquet flooring, marble fireplaces, 1779 panelling, 68sqm dining room, Versailles flagstone parquet flooring, 1880 Louis XVI panelling, fireplace, 18 sqm smoking room with Grez-en-Bouère marble fireplace, master's study used as a hunting room, 55sqm double-exposure kitchen with stone fireplace, storeroom with former staff dining room in mezzanine above, pantry with sink, spiral staircase in out-of-work tower, laundry room, débotté, china cabinet, shower room and 2 wc. First floor: 9 bedrooms (8 with fireplaces), large library with elegant fireplace, 2 shower rooms with wc, bathroom and 2 wc. Above: 12 bedrooms (old, mainly for staff use), a home cinema, a shower room with toilet and an attic. Cellar below, with boiler room. Total living area approx. 960sqm. The outbuildings include : Two large 16th-century L-shaped outbuildings, facing each other and symmetrical to the château. They were remodeled in 1777. The one on the right comprises stables refurbished in the 19th century, with 4 stalls, 3 boxes, marble troughs, brass sides and straw mat, herringbone brick floor, drain, lads' rooms and tack room. The other common building has all the features of a domestic dwelling of the time: large attic with beautiful old roof frame, kitchen with high fireplace, terracotta tiles, wooden partitions, wine-press cellar on wooden base, fruit orchard, orangery with beautiful frame; recent roofs. Seventeenth-century barn, original framework, slate roof with original hatchets and dormer windows, paved floor. Dovecote with imperial roof, topped by a skylight. Its large dimensions, thick walls and proximity to the moat indicate that it was once a medieval defensive tower; High-gabled chapel, rebuilt in the 15th century on 13th-century foundations, featuring a Gothic-filled main window; Crib; Restored, comfortable gardener's dwelling occupied by the janitor couple; Bread oven. A large, slightly elevated garden adorns the south facade. It still features elements of the 18th-century French garden: kitchen garden, orchard and rose garden. It is adorned with statues of Medici. Its geometric lines match the classicist architecture of the buildings. Topiary art is at its best here. At the far end of the garden, four green theaters. An adjoining wood, with its star-shaped paths following the original plan of 1783, completes the site. In the courtyard of honor, some twenty bigarad and lemon orange trees stand out, eleven of them exceptional for their size and age. The total surface area is 45.45 acres (18 ha 41 a 46 ca.)