Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Petit Perray Castle is a building built at the end of the 18th century, located on the town of Vaas, in the Sarthe department. It has been partially listed as historic monuments since 1993, including the castle, its gardens, moats, its forecourt, its pavilions, and its gate and gate. This monument illustrates the aristocratic residential architecture of the pre-revolutionary period, typical of the Sarthoese countryside.

The Boizard family, originally from Anjou, was associated with this estate in the 17th century. François de Boizard, squire and Sieur de Villegraton, lived there in 1654. Married to Gabrielle of Spain and then to Madelaine Guilleu, he had several descendants, including Jacqueline de Boizard, married to Charles Thibout de La Fresnaye. This line, linked to the local nobility, carries the weapons of the three golden pillars, symbolizing its social status.

The history of the castle is also marked by influential marriage alliances. The descendants of François de Boizard and Charles Thibout de La Fresnaye include characters such as Charles David Thibout de La Fresnae, ancestor of Dr Victor Thibout de La Fresnaye, known for his patent on rubber in textiles. These family ties extend the influence of the castle to Normandy, especially in Caen, where a street honours the latter.

On the architectural level, the Petit Perray castle is distinguished by its spatial organization: a central house body, a forecourt framed with four pavilions, and a garden lined with moat. These elements, protected since 1993, reflect 18th-century aesthetic cannons, combining defensive (douve) functionality and landscaping amenities. Registration for historic monuments underscores its heritage value, both for its family history and for its architecture.

The domain is today a testimony of the social and architectural changes of the Sarthe between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Although the sources do not specify its current use (visits, rental, private residence), its state of conservation and legal protection make it a remarkable site of the Liguria heritage.

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