The best traffic-free bike rides around Berd'Huis

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.

Religious building dating back to the 11th century and expanded during the Renaissance. The first parish church of Nogent-le-Rotrou dates back to the 11th century, and its expansion dates from the 15th and 16th centuries. Beautiful bell tower topped with a lantern surrounded by an ornate gallery.

The Saint-Hilaire church is of Romanesque origin and was built in the 11th century by the monks of Saint-Gratien de Tours. It was remodeled in the 16th century, and disfigured in the 19th.

A must-see that overlooks the valley.

Occupying mainly a hill dominated by a curious dome-shaped bell tower, the territory of Brunelles has a rich historical past, sometimes even bordering on the marvelous. If the very ancient occupation of the place is attested to in Bois-Jahan, the disappearance of the village of La Ferrière and its church of La Madeleine during the Hundred Years' War (14th-15th century), give the hamlet of Vieux Murs a legendary air... A fortified castle and a chapel below probably stood here. Furthermore, because the lords of Brunelles who were the vassals of the Rotrou, were required to guard the Saint-Jean castle, one of the towers of the Nogent castle still bears the name of the village today. Situated on a rocky peak, the Saint-Martin church is visible from afar. Built in the 15th century, most of it, including the spire, was unfortunately destroyed by fire, and only the stone choir with a semi-circular vault is original. The nave is lit on each side by three flamboyant-style windows, and in the choir you can admire the beautiful stone altarpiece that has recently been restored. You will also notice an oculus on the south face, found during the 1998 restoration campaign, and enriched with a recent stained glass window illustrating the Creation. Finally, visitors should not fail to stop by the relics of the young Alexander, tortured for refusing to renounce his faith in Christ, as were other saints called martyrs for this, from the Greek "witnesses". There are thus many relics in our churches: they can be found at the first origin of basilicas, often built on ancient funerary areas on the outskirts of ancient cities. The relics of the saints are to be considered as the very humble signs of what their bodies were, the evocation of their human condition: it is with their bodies that the saints acted, thought, prayed, worked, suffered and experienced death. The monastery of the Val d’Arcisses was the first foundation of the monk Bernard d’Abbeville, later called Bernard de Thiron, because the monks of St.-Denis de Nogent-le-Rotrou would not let him do it! Bernard had to settle nearby, in the parish of Gardais, under the protection of the bishop of Chartres, Saint Yves and de Rotrou, Count of Perche. He had been established in a manor located between Brunelles and Ozée. The Notre-Dame-du-Val-d’Arcisses abbey welcomed Benedictine nuns during the 17th and 18th centuries. Destroyed during the Revolution, all that remains is the gatehouse, a beautiful arch embedded in a façade. One of the monks' major works was to dig the Arcisses canal, a diversion from the Cloche: it irrigated the abbey's lands and supplied the fountain which flowed near the Notre-Dame church in Nogent-le-Rotrou.

Church built in the 12th and 16th centuries. Listed apse from the 12th century. 4-storey bell tower. Corner buttress bell with staircase turret. Renaissance portal. Large Gothic window above the portal. 16th century roof and nave. Stone statue of a bishop, 16th century paintings.

Very pretty trompe l'oeil

Between the green hills of Perche, the Saint-Denis church contains a 16th century baptistery listed as a Historic Monument. Explanatory plaque at the entrance. This church is Romanesque in style and has a rounded apse and a quadrangular bell tower. The baptismal font dates from the 16th century. The church is surrounded by walls made of Saint-Denis stone.