Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The seigneurial house of the Escuray, located in Prinquiau in the Loire-Atlantique, finds its origins at the end of the 14th century, around 1390, as a medieval Breton mansion. A dendrochronological study conducted in 2018 by the company Dendrotech confirmed that the trees of its medieval frame were felled between 1385 and 1398, attesting to its initial construction at this time. The site could, however, go back to an earlier feudal motte, potentially linked to the Viking invasions of the 9th-Xth century, located south of the current building. This mansion, centered around an octagonal tower surmounted by a dovecote, reflected Breton defensive architecture.

Around 1600, the mansion was deeply transformed by René de la Lande and his wife Françoise de Mareil, married in 1598. The torque enlarges the main body by adding a symmetrical right wing to the existing one, creating a U-shaped plane around the central tower. Four Breton Renaissance-style windows, typical of the period, are added, marking the evolution of the mansion into a more elegant seigneurial home. However, this period of prosperity was short-lived: René and Françoise died young (in 1608 and 1613), leaving their children under the supervision of managers who dilapidated their heritage. In 1667, their granddaughter, Ruinée, was to sell the estate to Jean de la Bourdonnaye, lord of Bratz.

The castle then underwent a succession of notable owners, often linked to Breton history and national upheavals. In the 18th century, he returned to the original family thanks to Jacques Danguy, an adviser to the Parliament of Brittany, who bought him back in 1752 for his wife Louise Le Flo de Tremolo, granddaughter of Renée de la Lande. Their descendants, the Knights Espive, marked Prinquiau deeply for more than a century (1768-1891). Denis-Jean Espivent de la Villeguevraye, engaged in the royal armies during the Revolution, saw the castle looted in 1793 by Republican soldiers after the Battle of Savenay. His nephew, François de Perran, a sailor and royalist, was imprisoned ten years in England after fighting the English in the Indian Ocean.

In the 19th century, Denis Espivent de Perran, mayor of Prinquiau for 50 years, restored the castle in its present state and devoted himself to the local population, caring for the inhabitants free of charge and financing the education of poor children. After his death in 1891, the estate declined: his granddaughter Yvonne dilapidated family property, and the castle was partially occupied by the Germans during the Second World War. In 1994, the town hall of Prinquiau became its owner and launched restoration works, supported since 2009 by the association A.R.P.E., which organizes cultural events to finance its preservation.

The seigneurial house of the Escuray thus illustrates nearly six centuries of Breton history, mixing medieval architecture and Renaissance, political commitments (royalism, revolution), and local life. Joined historic monuments in 1997, it remains a symbol of the heritage of the Niger, open to the public thanks to the joint action of the commune and passionate volunteers.

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