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Origin and history

The manor house of Courboyer is a 15th and 16th century residence located on the former territory of Colonard-Corubert, in the present municipality of Perche en Nocé (Orne, Normandy). This monument illustrates the classical architecture of the Perch manor houses, with a body of rectangular houses flanked by peppers and an octagonal staircase tower. A castral chapel, now extinct, completed the whole until 1947, while a round tower of defense remained at the rear.

The fief, mentioned in 1364, was attributed around 1500 to Jean de Ruberté, then passed to Pierre de Fontenay at the end of the sixteenth century. Since 2000, the mansion has housed the Perche Regional Natural Park House, inaugurated in 2005 by Nelly Olin, then Minister of Ecology. Its facades, roofs and four interior chimneys have been protected since 1981.

Architecturally, the mansion is distinguished by its mâchicoulis corbelled turrets, its spiral staircase housed in a polygonal tower, and an independent chapel with flamboyant bays, formerly decorated with 16th century frescoes. These elements make it a remarkable example of Percheron seigneurial heritage, combining defensive and residential functions.

The chapel, though demolished in 1947 by a farmer, was pierced by flamboyant Gothic bays and housed 16th-century murals. The site, now open to the public, plays a central role in the development of the regional natural park, while at the same time testifying to the feudal and rural history of the region.

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