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Origin and history

The priory of the Bonshommes de Ballots was founded in 1193 by Maurice II de Craon, local lord, on an ancient road linking Craon to the abbey of La Roë. Belonging to the order of Grandmont (or Saint-Étienne de Muret), he served as a hotel for pilgrims and travellers between Anjou and Brittany. Its name "Goodmen" reflects the common name of monks in the 12th century. The priory was enriched by the gifts of the lords of Craon and benefactors, receiving land, grain rents, fishing and milling rights, as evidenced by the charters of 1196, 1205 or 1229.

As early as the 14th century, the Priory became an annex of La Haie aux Bonshommes d'Angers. The wars of Religion (16th century) accelerated its decline: the monks had already deserted it around 1562, although the inhabitants of Craon asked for their return in 1588. In the 17th century, its income (44 bushels of wheat, 5 pipes of wine) came from tithes and a fief. The priory also housed figures such as Claude Ligier, Prior from 1635 to 1672, who kept a room and hunting privileges there.

Today, there is only one building in red sandstone, a vestige of cellars, representing half of the original ensemble. The church, with a swimming pool and a remarkable altar (disappeared after the Revolution), was destroyed in the late 19th century. The cloisters had disappeared around 1700. The site, located 500 metres from the statue of Notre-Dame-de-Pontmain, has been listed as a Historic Monument since 1988. Its local name, "Petit-Pontmain", dates from the installation of a statue in 1927.

The historical records of the priory evolve with the epochs: Fratres Grandimontis in 1196, Ecclesia Beatea Manae in 1224, or La Meson Deu in 1314. These names reflect his anchoring in the forest of Craon, where he played a role both spiritual, economic (via seigneurial gifts) and social, as a place of refuge — a murderer found refuge there in 1532.

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