Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Mormoulins mill, located on the Eure River in the eponymous hamlet of Chaudon (Eure-et-Loir), finds its first records written in the fourteenth century (1335 and 1407). In medieval times, it depended on a seigneurial fiefdom and illustrated the alliance between hydraulic energy, feudal rights (peaches, firmages) and the grain production of the Beauce. Its local economic role was part of a network of mills linked to the seigneuries of the valley, where bread wheat and royalties structured rural life.

Under the Old Regime, the mill of Mormoulins retained its milling function, operated by blades and grinding wheels to produce flour. The archives of 1864 confirm its activity since the reign of Henry IV, emphasizing its integration into river transport circuits and seigneurial royalties. The French Revolution (1789) upset this system: although the sources do not specify confiscation, the abolition of feudal rights necessarily changed its status and exploitation.

In the 19th century, the mill adapted to industrial transformations: in 1879, an expertise described two separate wheels (one of 3.20 m operating two pairs of wheels), reflecting the evolution of hydraulic techniques under the Empire and the Republic. The site was also affected by the development of the departmental road at the beginning of the century, which made the nearby castle disappear and truncated its historic canals. These changes make it a witness to the transition between traditional crafts and modernization.

Ranked a historic monument in 2003, the Mormoulins Mill is now the only functional and complete water mill protected in the department. Its restoration, initiated in 1984 by Claudine and Philippe Bedou, and continued since 2020, has preserved its hydraulic elements (vans, bief, lock) and architecture. The Prix Fondation du Patrimoine 2025 funded the renovation of its valves and the boat door, highlighting its heritage importance.

This mill embodies almost seven centuries of history: from the rural Middle Ages (seigneurial rights, Beauce wheat) to the Revolution (abolition of tolls), then to the industrial era (modernization of the wheels) and finally to its contemporary valorisation. It also illustrates the Royal Valley of the Eure, a historic corridor combining production, hydraulic energy and transport, now recognized as a landscape and technical heritage.

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