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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The seigneurial house of the Grande Coudrière, located in Mézangers in Mayenne, is a 14th century medieval house, well preserved and surrounded by moat. Originally, it served as a hunting relay, with utility spaces on the ground floor and a large living room upstairs, marked by an imposing fireplace. Its architecture, original for the time, includes door windows and fireplaces with external pipes, rare features.

The seigneurial land depended on the fiefs of Chelé and Bourgon. The house, transformed into a farm in the 19th century, preserves remarkable elements such as an external stone staircase, an ogival door with double rows of harpsichords, and panelling in the attic, added at the end of the 16th century. It was listed as a historic monument in 1997 for its exceptional heritage value.

The archives mention the house under the names La Couldrière (1468) and La Coudrayère (1529). His lords included noble families such as the Ecotais, the Corbon, the Courtarvel, and the Maucourt de Bourjolly, including Charles, author of a Chronological Memory on Laval. The estate was sold as a national property in 1797 (year V) before being bought by Thérèse Dubois, lady of the Rock. At the beginning of the 19th century, it belonged to M. Serclot des Coudrières, d'Evron.

The house illustrates the evolution of seigneurial residences in Mayenne, moving from cynegetic relays to farming, while preserving traces of its past prestige. Its interior fittings, such as the open walls and the walled chimneys, testify to the refinement of its occupants in the 15th and 16th centuries.

Today, the site remains an emblematic example of medieval civil architecture in the Pays de la Loire, linked to local history by its lords and its role in the Mayen feudal network. Its inscription as a historical monument in 1997 devotes its protection and historical value.

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