Château de la Motte-Serrant en Mayenne

Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Château de la Motte-Serrant is a monument located in Montfours, in the department of Mayenne, in the Pays de la Loire region. It is located on the left bank of the Mayenne River, about 800 metres west of the village. This historic site still preserves traces of its medieval past, including a moth surrounded by moat and imposing walls. The modern castle, built later, was located slightly high on the side of a hill, thus moving away from the river.

Originally, the fief of the Motte-Serrant was attached to the barony of Entrammes, on which it depended feudally. In 1472, Jean de Rochechouart, seigneur of Entrammes, still exercised rights of justice in the parishes of Montfours and Sacé. Serrant's fief, on the other hand, belonged in the Middle Ages to a seigneurial family bearing this name, before passing to the fourteenth century at the house of Brie by the marriage of Françoise de Serrant with John II of Brie. This union marked a turning point in the history of the estate.

The chapel of Limbergère, also known as the chapel of La Motte-Serrant, was linked to the local seigneury, which provided for its presentation. The old castle, of modest size, still bears witness to its defensive past with its remains surrounded by moat. The various appellations of the domain over the centuries (the Motte, the Motte-Serrant, the Motte-Cérans) reflect its historical evolution and its changes of ownership or feudal status.

External links