The best traffic-free bike rides around Fontenay-Sur-Eure

The main nave, ending in a semicircular apse, is preceded by a timber-framed porch and opens to the north onto a chapel through a wide archway. The timber-framed bell tower, clearly from the same period as the 17th-century wainscoting, rests on a base spanning the nave. A second nave is covered with quadripartite masonry vaults from different periods. Of a dressed stone tower, only the spiral staircase and the first level remain, built between the 11th and 13th centuries. The side aisle was built in the 14th century and enlarged in the 16th. 1660: Supposed collapse of the tower attached to the nave, of which only the first level remains. 1679: Paneling on the nave and probable construction of the small timber-framed spire. 19th century: Supposed construction of the timber-framed chapel. The church was under the jurisdiction of the chapter of Notre-Dame de Chartres (the chapter's name can be seen on the lock of the small door on the right and is painted on the walls of the capital with stars and the date 1733 L.M.M.P.).

The Romanesque church of Saint George was rebuilt in 1540 after a fire destroyed it during the conflicts between the French, English, and Burgundians. It is said that the villagers took refuge in the church, especially in the tower, and that the English did not hesitate to set it ablaze. The two bells, dating from 1816, and a beam bearing the carpenters' names are listed as historical monuments. Exploring the village, you will discover several ponds and old water pumps, a Caesar's Way (Chemin d'Arcé), and a wood.

superb car-free road

Unfortunately, the church was not accessible when I visited (mid-September 2024). You could only look in through a gate and the dance of death depictions on the left side were not really visible. In front of them were transparencies with skeleton drawings. Maybe those were the depictions...

Historically, our small medieval Romanesque church, dedicated to Saint Silvanus, was an integral part of a lordship. We can, still today, guess the vestiges of the seigniorial coat of arms on the liter (the banner) located just below the windows on the north face. Located near the old castle moat, the cemetery flanked it, on the north side in place of the current car park and the multi-purpose room, on the south side at the level of the green space currently planted with lime trees. Originally only the central building existed and the bell tower topped it in its center. This is the reason why at the beginning of the 1980s, the framework began to collapse, weakened by the weight and the marks of time left by the old bell tower. This renovation proved, if necessary, through the design of the framework, the existence of the central bell tower. The time when the bell tower was moved off-center is at the end of the 16th century, beginning of the 17th century. Concerning the creation of the sacristy and the side chapels, the departmental archives hold a plan of the church, dated August 19, 1853 which clearly indicates the existence of the sacristy and only the north chapel, the construction of the South chapel was therefore not concomitant. In the masonry, the small Romanesque windows can still be seen, the only one remaining, unwalled, opens to the east and still today offers a light entrance into the apse. Around the church we notice two types of buttresses, the first, the narrower ones date from the creation of the building, the more massive ones date from the 18th century, placed as reinforcements Neo-classicism at the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century left its mark on this building. Outside, as we have seen, by the addition of the sacristy as well as the small side chapels now forming a transept.

Thivars is mentioned in 966 in the Chartres cartulary. In the 12th century, the church became the property of Josaphat Abbey. The current church was built in the 16th century: a date of 1545 is engraved on a cherub in the turret. It is a very high construction but very irregular, this comes from the fact that it belongs to several eras: ogival style in the windows, the entrance door is Romanesque (it may be the door of the first Romanesque church) . The choir was formerly separated from the nave by an iron grille which disappeared during the French Revolution. The ceiling has pretty paneling dating from 1645. The two side altars are dedicated: one to Notre Dame des Victoires and the other to Saint Joseph. Among the furniture we can note an interesting painting which represents Our Lord pronouncing on a coin. In 1940, two bombs fell less than 30 m from the church, destroying the stained glass windows on the south side which were replaced by grisailles in 1987. Three pretty stained glass windows light up this church: Nativity stained glass window installed by Mr Campin in 1955 Stained glass windows of the village's patron saints, Saint Radegonde and Saint Hilaire, installed in 1900 and 1987 respectively.

Porte de Boisville Its ogival portal opens into a thick quadrangular massif where there was a room for operating the portcullis. We can still see the groove in the thickness of the walls. On the left and right two small funnel-shaped spaces allowed the defenders to observe and repel the enemies who appeared on the bridge. The gate was topped by a building serving as a guardhouse which was demolished in 1761. The guarding of these doors and their keys was in the troubled times of the Hundred Years' War the subject of concern for the inhabitants and also a source of quarrels and trials between the city and the abbey. This gate is preceded by a bridge of 5 stone arches, the one adjoining the gate was built in 1774 and replaced a drawbridge which defended the entrance.

Very beautiful church and the public toilets next to it are perfect, even for filling water bottles too large for the classic sinks.