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Origin and history

The Masselinate Manor House, also known as the Samson Manor House, is a 15th-century building located in Saint-Martin-de-Mailloc, Calvados. Built mainly in wooden panels, it fits into a rectangular plane and stands out for its two-sided roof with two large windows. This monument, typical of Norman medieval architecture, was inscribed in the Historic Monuments on December 26, 1928 for its facades and roofs.

The Masselinaie fief originally belonged to the Mailloc family. Around 1430, Marie de Mailloc, widow of Jean de Tournebu, sold the estate to Pierre Cauchon, then bishop of Lisieux. He donated it to the Cathedral of Lisieux in 1441, marking his connection with the local church. The manor house, enlarged several times, preserves traces of these architectural transformations.

The central house, entirely in half-timbered, dates back to the 15th century and features features such as twin doors and a corbellation on base. Two subsequent expansion campaigns, on undetermined dates, added stone and half-timbered wings, one of which had a corbelled gable with oblique base. Around the house, outbuildings (grange, press, stable) complete the whole, testifying to its seigneurial and agricultural use.

Located on the west side of a hilltop overlooking the Orbiquet Valley, the manor house is integrated into the landscape of the country of Auge, about 1 km northwest of the Church of St.Martin. Its strategic location and architecture make it a remarkable example of Norman rural heritage, preserved in spite of centuries.

The elements protected since 1928 — facades and roofs — underline the historical and aesthetic value of the site. Although some construction periods remain blurred, the Masselinate mansion embodies the medieval heritage of Normandy, between ecclesiastical power and seigneurial life.

Today, the mansion remains a major architectural testimony, associated with figures like Pierre Cauchon, whose role in local and religious history marked his destiny. The surrounding outbuildings also remind of its past operation, between farm and noble residence.

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