castle for sale Saint-Pierre-des-Landes, 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.

A 19th-century Renaissance Revival chateau with outbuilding and grounds overlooking a river on the outskirts of Laval. An impressive wrought-iron gate flanked by sculpted stone pillars opens onto a shady driveway leading to the chateau, set high above the beautiful surrounding grounds. To the north of the residence, there are a former caretaker's lodge and a garage. To the south, a swimming pool adjoins wooded parklands with a pond. To the west, the noble dwelling backs onto meadows stretching across a rocky promontory. Built in 1871 by architect Alfred Boutreux for a Laval doctor, the chateau is ideally situated overlooking the river Mayenne. The main facade is punctuated by four bays and five storeys, including a basement and an attic. The walls are of lime-rendered rubble masonry, while the corner quoins and window surrounds are of dressed tuffeau limestone. The foundations are of granite. Facing south-east, the main elevation is one of the most exuberant in the region, reminiscent of a theatre, it features a loge and balconies. The tall building is a superb example of the Renaissance architectural repertoire as revived by artists and architects in the 19th century. It features Corinthian columns, stringcourses, cornices, surroundings, entablatures, pediments, mascarons, balustrades and rustications, among other sculpted or moulded stone elements. The windows have basket-handle arches and large-paned wooden frames with rounded edges. The French windows on the ground and first floors are topped by glazed transoms and protected by small stone balustrades or wrought-iron railings. The steep pavilion roof is of slate, topped with brick and stone chimney stacks and features five massive, highly ornate pedimented dormers, three of which are arranged in a tiered group in the centre, together forming a pediment at the top of the building. These basket-handle dormers, set at the edge of the roof, are flanked by columns forming straight jambs, with massive stone pediments of various shapes, including the circular one at the top, which crowns the entire building, above the oriel window that forms the avant-corps of the building. This projecting section forms the most striking feature of the chateau. Built in the centre of the main facade on two storeys, including the basement level, it houses a winter garden bordered on three sides by wrought-iron glass walls. It is topped by a terrace with pear-shaped stone balusters, accessed from the first floor. To the south, there is a perron covered by a glass and wrought iron canopy. Lastly, to the north, a service entrance leads to a kitchen.