Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Lucinière, located in Joué-sur-Erdre in Loire-Atlantique, finds its origins in the Middle Ages as a castle. In 1485 it was sold by the Montfort-Laval family to Pierre Landais, then named " Roche-en-Nort". Two years later, in 1487, King Charles VIII and Anne de Beaujeu camped there with their troops after the siege of Nantes. The castle then passed into the hands of ecclesiastical personalities, like Cardinal Robert Guibé and Bishop François Hamon, before its fortifications were partially demolished in 1589, and then preserved thanks to the intervention of the Duchess of Mercœur.

In the 17th century, the Renaissance castle underwent major changes between 1681 and 1682, with the addition of a central house body and a pediment facing the Erdre. André Le Nôtre, famous gardener of Versailles, traces the avenues of the park. In the 18th century, the estate became a refuge for persecuted Jansenists, led by Anne-Marie de Gennes, Countess of the Roche-en-Nort. At the end of this century, the castle was looted and burned, leaving only three turrets and a chapel containing family tombs.

In the 19th century, the castle houses a purebred herding. In 1884 Adolphe Le Gualès de Mézaubran became its owner by marriage. During the Second World War, he and his wife, Gilberte, protected several Jewish families, including children, which would give them the title of Righteous Persons among the nations in 1999. Today, the chapel, the orangery and the dining room with its woodwork have been classified as historical monuments since 1985.

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