Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Lanfrière Castle, 800 metres from the village of Montjean in Mayenne, is a 19th-century mansion built in 1840 by Morin de la Blottais. The latter, in restoring the estate, adds neogothic elements such as turrets, balusters and stone sculptures, although the friable tuf used threatens their durability. The gate, dating from 1642, was once flanked by a round tower, vestige of an older structure.

La Lanfrière's fief, dependent on Montjean, included fishing rights on Oudon. In the 19th century, the castle became an aristocratic place of life, especially for the family of Monti de Reze at the beginning of the 20th century. During the Franco-German war of 1870 and the Paris Commune, Countess Virginie Estève welcomed the Couvent des Oiseaux, a Parisian religious community with her orphans, led by her sister, Louise Morin-Blotais.

The estate is linked to influential families: the Estève, including Martin-Roch-Xavier, treasurer of Napoleon I, and the Morin-Blotais, owners and restorers of the castle. Napoleon-César-Xavier Estève, General Counselor of the Eure, married Virginie Morin-Blotais, thus uniting the two lines. Their Urban daughter married Bernard de Monti de Rezé, the last notable owner cited.

The Abbé Angot, in his Dictionnaire historique de la Mayenne (1900-1910), relies on parish and departmental archives to document the history of the castle. However, it highlights contradictions in genealogical sources, such as those of the genealogist Quatrebarbes. The site remains associated with the local event, with equipment such as Rallye Beaulieu-Montjean.

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