Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Montriou, located in Feneu in the department of Maine-et-Loire, is a building whose oldest parts date back to the 15th century. His chapel called the "Three Marys", classified as a Historic Monument in 1964, was commissioned by Bertrand de Beauvau († 1474), the senechal of King René d'Anjou, then completed by his daughter Charlotte († 1493), wife of Yves de Scépeaux. The murals, representing angels carrying the instruments of the Passion, date from 1484 and testify to its artistic and religious importance.

Over the centuries, the castle changed its hands several times: sold in 1595 to Robert Constantin, adviser to the presidial of Angers, he then passed to his descendants, including Jacques and Gabriel Constantin, before being acquired in 1663 by Hercule de Launay. In 1692 he entered the Guérin family by inheritance, and in 1740 he was sold to Michel Mauvif de la Plante, an alderman of Angers. Since then, the estate has remained in the same family line, thanks in particular to the alliances of the Cassin de La Loge and Loture.

In the 19th century, Ferdinand Cassin de La Loge (1831-1915) undertook important works: expansion of the house, construction of the communes, of the farm, and creation of a vegetable garden. His heir, Louise Cassin de La Loge (1859-1947), passed the castle to the Loture family after his marriage in 1893. The monument, which is still private, today embodies a preserved architectural and historical heritage, reflecting both the medieval angeline heritage and the transformations of the 19th century.

The chapel, with its murals and four statues, has been the protected element of the castle since its classification in 1964. His iconography linked to the Passion of Christ and his sponsor, Bertrand de Beauvau, make it a rare testimony to the devotion and art of the late Middle Ages in Anjou. The rest of the estate, although not classified, illustrates the evolution of seigneurial residences on agricultural and family farms.

The castle of Montriou is also representative of the social dynamics of Anjou: first a place of power for noble or bourgeois families (Constantin, Guérin, Mauvif), it became in the 19th century a property rooted in a sustainable heritage and agricultural management. Its history reflects the transitions between feudality, administrative monarchy and post-revolutionary society, while maintaining a strong link with the territory of the Angelvin.

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