The best road cycling routes around Saint-Denis-D'Authou

The construction of the church of Coudray en Perche dates back to the 12th century, but the 16th century saw its enlargement by the addition of a higher choir with a stone vault. The interior is distinguished by the nave's inverted ship-hull structure with its painted ceiling and four equally painted beautiful beams. Also noteworthy are the stone baptismal fonts with their scaly wooden lid, which bears a sculpted angel's head. All the windows were remodeled as was often the custom in the Renaissance. In the 19th century, a gallery was built for the children of the sisters' school. Above, admire the stained glass window "Let the little children come to me." The opening of the chancel window led to the modification of the main altarpiece, due to the generosity of the Prince of Henin, owner of the Château de Montgraham. The pretty stained glass window, which thus descends into the middle of the altarpiece, relates to the story of the church's patron saint: it is a depiction of Jesus handing the keys to Saint Peter.

The church of Saint-Georges de Souancé is a vast edifice 34 m long. Built in the 16th century, perhaps on an older edifice, it was remodelled several times in the 19th century: notably in 1862 with the addition of a sacristy and a small chapel, while in 1894 the openings in the nave were enlarged and the choir vault was redone. The plan of the church consists of a nave of four bays, a choir bay of the same width, and a pentagonal apse. The bell tower, of square plan, is connected by a narrow passage to the nave. The sacristy, built in the 19th century, communicates with the choir bay; finally, the adjoining chapel opens onto the right part of the apse. The exterior silhouette of the edifice, situated on a steep slope, is dominated by the pointed gable of the apse. The bell tower, 21 m high, is topped by a four-sided roof. The first two levels could date from the 13th century, as suggested by the thickness of its walls, the arrangement of the slightly projecting buttresses, the narrow arched windows, long since blocked up. A strongly projecting band externally marks the separation of these two levels. Only the last storey, which houses the bells, is pierced by high windows; it is built slightly set back from the base of the tower, the setback being highlighted by a stone chamfer. The gable of the west facade, slightly less high than that of the choir, has, like it, a very pointed profile. It is finished with a rondel and crochets. The flamboyant-style portal is of a fairly common design: the depressed arch, flanked by two pilasters, is surmounted by a volute with acanthus leaves. A pointed arch window with two lancets opens in the gable wall, in the same axis as the portal. Two thick corner buttresses were probably built in the 16th century. The Count of Souancé states that the windows opened in the side walls last century replaced older semi-circular windows. Inside the edifice, the nave is covered with a wooden ceiling, referred to as "bardeaux" at the beginning of the century, while the 16th-century choir is vaulted with ogival cross vaults. The study of the stained glass windows and the coats of arms of the Le Breton, lords of Vilandry, the Souancé and Montdoucet, which appear on the keystones of the first two bays of the choir, seem to establish that the construction, begun around 1520, was completed before 1542. The stained glass windows of the choir tell the life of Saint George, patron saint of the church. After being subjected to poorly documented dismantling, they were reassembled in disorder during the 19th century. However, classified in 1907, they were re-leaded in 1923, a restoration that justified the award in 1926 of a prize of 5,000 F granted by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres from the Pellechot legacy. The Count of Souancé, a correspondent of this Academy, requested and obtained, in 1930, the inscription of the choir and bell tower of the church in the supplementary inventory, then, in 1935, the protection of the facade and of the wooden ceiling covering the nave. This protection was justified by the desire to prevent ill-conceived restorations from compromising the work that had just been completed by the architect of the Historical Monuments, Maunoury. The Count of Souancé recalled the unfortunate interventions that had previously been carried out in the edifice: widening of the nave windows, opening of reinforced concrete dormer windows in the tower roof, and, even more serious, the removal of the wall paintings uncovered in 1874, during the change of the altar. La Sauvegarde de l'Art français granted in 2002 a contribution of €7,000 for the sanitation works of the edifice and for the restoration of the bell tower. These works had been deferred for six years.

The building's foundations date back to the 12th century, when it was dependent on the abbey of Thiron-Gardais. The interior houses a remarkable set of three Baroque altarpieces from the 17th century (around 1650), recently restored.

Magnificent ceiling with the possibility of lighting it up

This ancient fortified castle dominates the Huisne Valley at 360° with its imposing keep. The building, with its troubled history, has undergone numerous modifications in its architecture and functions. A visit is essential to understand the complexity of its history and to observe the architectural evolutions.

The inhabitants of Margon can admire the church of Notre-Dame du Mont-Carmel, proudly dominating the old town on its rocky spur, at the corner of two green valleys. It was later given an aisle during the 16th century, but its Romanesque portal has been preserved. It reigns benevolently over the old cemetery which surrounds it and which has recently been enlarged due to the increase in the population of the commune.

A must-see that overlooks the valley.

Superb castle in the Perche!