Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Moncontour Castle, built around 1040 by Foulques Nerra (county of Anjou), is a strategic fortress on the border of Anjou and Poitou. Its dungeon, rebuilt in the 12th and 15th centuries, dominates the city and the Dive Valley. Ranked a historic monument in 1877, it retains defensive elements such as mâchicoulis and murderers. A legend attributed to the fairy Melusine, built in one day.

The fortress played a key role in major conflicts: taken over by Du Guesclin in 1372 after an English occupation, it was also the scene of the battle of Moncontour in 1569, where the Catholics of the Duke of Anjou (future Henri III) crushed the Protestants of Coligny, leaving 17,000 dead. The neighbouring plain, "The Redt Valley", keeps its memory.

Moncontour, a barony dependent on the senechalite of Saumur under the Old Regime, passes into the hands of noble families such as Lusignan, Craon or Chabot. In the 19th century, Honoré de Balzac was interested in buying the castle. Today, the restored dungeon offers a panoramic view, while the remains of the castle and church have been inscribed since 1995.

The town, marked by its medieval heritage, also houses renovated washbasins, a leisure base around a lake of 10 hectares, and hiking trails. Its history reflects feudal, religious and revolutionary struggles, with a change of name in Montagne-sur-Dive under the Terror.

The local economy, formerly agricultural (cereals, goat farming), is now oriented towards tourism and the preservation of natural heritage. The areas around the Dive, classified as ZNIEFF, are home to a remarkable biodiversity, while the Logis Terra Villa Museum values the constructions of raw land, typical of the region.

The Romanesque churches of Moncontour (Notre-Dame, Saint-Nicolas) and associated communes (Mésis, Saint-Chartres) complete this heritage, with hosannières crosses and medieval sarcophagi. The city, close to the Loire-Anjou-Touraine nature park, combines history and preserved natural surroundings.

External links