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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Gallerande Castle, located in Pringé on the town of Luché-Pringé (Sarthe), finds its origins in the 12th century as a medieval fortress. Owned by the family of Clermont-Gallerande for nearly 600 years, it is first a modest stronghold, with a chapel (the Douet) built in 1275. In the Middle Ages, the castle was attacked by the Hundred Years' War: its chapel was destroyed in 1360, and the dungeon was burned by the English in 1426 after their retirement. The seigneurial family, absent during the conflicts, entrusted its defence to local captains, such as Guillaume Grugelin, whose surrender without combat in 1421 marked a dark episode.

In the 15th century, under Louis II of Clermont-Gallerande (Chambellan of King René-Anjou), the castle was rebuilt in a Renaissance style, abandoning its defensive character for more comfortable homes. In 1576 Henry III erected the seigneury as a marquisat, uniting several surrounding lands. The chapel of the Douet was rebuilt in 1647, but the wars of Religion also left their mark: the castle was occupied by the leaguers. The present architecture, with its cylindrical towers and its house body, dates from this period of transition between the Middle Ages and the modern era.

From the 19th century the castle changed hands: sold in 1822 to the family of Sarcé, it was left in 1985 to the sovereign order of Malta by its last heiress, Anne de la Planche de Ruillé. Among his treasures, a painting by Georges de La Tour, Saint-Thomas à la Pique, was acquired by the Louvre for 32 million francs before the sale of the estate to an American owner. Today, the private property of the castle is not open to the public, but its wooded park and 18th-century outbuildings (colombier, barracks) recall its seigneurial and military past.

The estate extends around a long canal separating the parts of the road, with in the background a hill descending towards the Loir. The four cylindrical towers and two quadrangular towers frame a main house and a wing in return, illustrating the evolution of a fortress in aristocratic residence. The archives also mention links to lands like Montrevault, where the lords took refuge during the conflicts.

The family of Clermont-Gallerande, which emerged from the union between the Garin de Galaranda heiress (mentioned in 1173) and Robin II de Clermont around 1210, dominates the history of the place. Their marriage alliances, like that of John II with the heiress of Mervé around 1380, gradually expanded the estate. The chapelry founded in 1275 in the church of Our Lady of Pringé served as a family burial, highlighting their local anchor until the Revolution.

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