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Origin and history

The Château de la Barillière, located in La Croixille in the department of Mayenne, is a historical monument surrounded by a chapel and a pond. It is 1,200 metres west of the village, on a tributary of Vilaine. At the end of the 19th century, the castle, completely renovated, formed an architectural complex with an inner courtyard, turrets and an isolated chapel. Permission to celebrate Mass was granted in 1638, and the chapel was blessed on December 20, 1742.

The Barillière's fief was vassal d'Ernée and possessed land justice. It belonged to the Couasnon family, a Breton noble line established at La Croixille in the 16th century. In 1633 this family acquired the parish seigneury. Pierre de Couasnon, in 1668, affirmed his status as a shield for him and his brothers and sisters, including Alexis, parish priest of Poshe, and John, in the service of the king.

In the 18th century, two members of the family distinguished themselves: César-Jérôme Couasnon de la Barillère, archdeacon and chaplain of the king, and his brother François-Marie-Jérôme, vicar general of Limoges. The latter, imprisoned as a refractory priest during the Revolution, was executed on 20 March 1794 in Ernea. His body was transferred in 1814 to the sanctuary of Charne. Couasnon's family still occupied the castle at the end of the 19th century.

The historical descriptions mention a "passable castle" with a chapel and marshy meadows. Old maps, such as those of Cassini or Hubert Jaillot, refer to him as a notable place in the region, associated with a village and a pond.

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