Mill Villefranche-de-Lauragais (31) Price: $ 975,700 USD

• Euro (€ EUR)
• American Dollar ($ USD)
• British Pound (£ GBP)

Surface 250 m² Bedrooms 3  Bathroom 1  Land 2.4 ha

An old watermill in grounds and meadows that cover 2.5 hectares, close to a large village, nestled in France’s Lauragais province.
The property lies in the north-east of France’s Haute-Garonne department, close to Toulouse, in an area nicknamed ‘the Languedoc’s granary’ because of its abundant agricultural production. The watermill is tied to the centuries-old tradition of cereal-growing in the region. The Lauragais province is also nicknamed ‘the Land of Plenty’ because of its wide-ranging produce from agriculture. It extends from Toulouse to Carcassonne.
Multiple colours from the region’s variety of crops turn these countless hills of fertile land into a patchwork. And the area has an especially rich history too. Catharism was well established in the Lauragais province from the twelfth century to the end of the Albigensian Crusade in 1229 – the province was even a major hub in this famous medieval chapter of religious history. The area is also known for its architectural heritage, which ranges from abbeys, churches and chateaux to bastides, dovecotes, windmills and disc-shaped steles.
The property stands only forty-five minutes from Toulouse–Blagnac airport and just ten minutes from the train station of Villefranche-de-Lauragais.
At the entrance, the property’s grounds and buildings are hidden by a tall hedge made up of different tree species. But once you get closer, the splendid house appears in its lush backdrop with its beautiful stone facade, its inviting covered terrace and its wonderful weeping willow beside it. The old watermill is made up of two rectangular sections, one at a right angle to the other. Each is crowned with a gable roof covered in monk-and-nun tiling. The main section’s roof is asymmetrical, its ridge unaligned with the building’s arched axis on the first floor. Behind the edifice, the covered terrace’s roof, with a timber structure and monk-and-nun tiling, extends the section that it joins, the face of which is set back.
An outbuilding stands a stone’s throw from there. It houses looseboxes for horses. At the end of this annexe is a small apartment. Monk-and-nun tiled roofing caps this outbuilding’s white-coated stone walls. A timber gallery runs along two thirds of the building’s south-facing facade. A low extension juts out from each end of the annexe: at the east end, a south section of the small apartment; and at the west end, a shelter. A garage with a structure and roof similar to those of the annexe’s main section adjoins its west face.
Further away is a large storage building for agricultural machinery and horse-riding equipment.
The old watermillThe edifice was built in the eighteenth century and fully restored in the twenty-first century. It faces east and west with a terrace at its south-east corner. An archway beneath which the river would flow and turn the water wheel underlines the charm of this house’s distinctive, well-balanced architecture. There are no more mechanisms left here for the old watermill’s original purpose to continue.
Its plain facade is punctuated with windows – including French windows – made up of small panes that heavy wooden shutters protect. The vast tiled terrace is an integral part of the dwelling. A roof covers two thirds of it, providing refreshing shade on hot summer days in the Lauragais province.
Ground floor
You reach the ground floor via the terrace, through an entrance door protected by a wooden shutter. It leads to a vast room made up of a dining area and a lounge. Its old exposed beams stand out, as do its smooth floors tiled with pale, marbled limestone. Glazed openings dot the floor, offering views of the water flowing beneath the house. The dining area is in a part of the living room where the mill’s water wheel once was. The old mechanism’s brick base is well conserved and showcased by lighting, as …