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  2. Divers
  3. Centre Val-de-Loire
  4. Indre-et-Loire
  5. 37390 Mettray

  6. Former agricultural and prison colony

Former agricultural and prison colony à Mettray en Indre-et-Loire

Indre-et-Loire

Former agricultural and prison colony

    33 Rue des Bourgetteries
    37390 Mettray
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Ancienne colonie agricole et pénitentiaire
Crédit photo : Thierry, A.. Graveur - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1800
1900
2000
1839
Foundation of the colony
22 janvier 1840
Arrival of the first settlers
1855
Opening of the Maison Paternelle
1873
Death of Demetz
1939
Final closure
11 septembre 2003
Historical monument classification
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

The remaining original buildings: the facades and roofs of the two administrative pavilions located on either side of the access aisle (Box B 138, 139); the facades and roofs and the original stairs of the six remaining settlers' pavilions, with the exception of modern parts (Box B 152); the church and the remaining parts of the old paternal house (Box B 152); the four buildings for use in workshops surrounding the church and the remains of the old paternal house (Box B 152); the workshop to the south, at the back of the settlers' pavilions (Box B 152); the farm building at the east end of the colony buildings (Box B 152); the building originally used as a laundry room, located on the other side of Rue du Petit-Bois (Box A 650); as well as parcels B 134, 138, 139, 151 to 153 (see plan annexed to the Order): inscription by order of 11 September 2003

Key figures

Frédéric-Auguste Demetz - Founder and Director (1839-1873) Created the educational model and managed the colony.
Alexis de Tocqueville - Philosopher and administrator Inspired the project after his study of American prisons.
Vicomte Louis-Hermann de Bretignières de Courteilles - Donor of the domain Available 700 hectares for installation.
Abel Blouet - Architect Designs plans after a study trip.
Jean Genet - Former resident (1926-1929) Testimony of his violence in *Miracle of the rose*.
Michel Foucault - Critical Philosophy Analyze Putay in *Monitor and Punish*.

Origin and history

The agricultural and prison colony of Metray was created in 1839 by philanthropists, including Alexis de Tocqueville and Frédéric-Auguste Demetz, to re-educate young offenders through land labour. Inspired by the American model of Auburn, it aimed to separate minors from adult prisoners, then mixed in prisons. The site, designed by architect Abel Blouet, included pavilions, workshops, farms and a chapel, organized into "families" of 24 children supervised by on-site trained foremans.

The daily life was rigorous: silence, agricultural or artisanal work, prayers, and minimum instruction (1 hour/day). The inmates, dressed in uniform and mowed, suffered strict discipline, with punishments such as isolation from bread and water. Despite the initial educational ideal, living conditions (poor food, high mortality) and the gradual militarization of the regime after 1884 led to the nickname "bain d ́enfants". The establishment closed in 1939, after welcoming 17,000 young people.

The project was born from a reformist context marked by the Penal Code of 1810 (article 66 on minors) and the study trips of Demetz and Blouet to the United States. Funded by donors such as the Viscount de Bretignières de Courteilles, which offered 700 hectares, the colony was managed by the Paternelle Society, presided successively by figures such as the Count of Gasparin or Eugene Goüin. Personalities such as Lamartine or Jules Verne (whose son was placed there) were linked to it, while Jean Genet and Michel Foucault later denounced institutional violence.

After its closure, the site will house from 1953 a medical-professional institute for young people in difficulty, still active today in the form of ITEP. Ranked as historical monuments in 2003, Metray remains an ambiguous symbol of the educational utopias of the 19th century, between philanthropy and repression. Its architecture, its archives and the testimonies of former settlers (like those of Raoul Leger) make it a key memory place for French prison and social history.

External links

Page Wikipedia
Page Monumentum