A listed former charterhouse surrounded by 44 ha of woodland and meadows,
on the border of a magnificent national forest in the heart of the Perche region
on the border of a magnificent national forest in the heart of the Perche region
Mortagne-au-Perche,
ORNE
lower-normandy
61400
FR
Location
To the west of the Ile-de-France region, in the Perche Regional Nature Park part of the Orne department, the property is ideally situated, touching the 1,600-hectare Réno-Valdieu national forest to the north. The two picturesque towns of Mortagne-au-Perche and Longny-au-Perche, which are 12 and 8 km respectively from the residence, offer all the essential facilities, shops and services. Paris can be reached by car in 2 hours via the RN12 and by TER (regional express train) stopping at a railway station 25 km from the property in 1 hour 30 minutes. The Perche region features rolling hills, pastureland and vast woodlands, remnants of the ancient “Sylva Pertica” tall-treed forest that once covered the entire province. The Perche Regional Nature Park embodies the identity of this region, born of the harmony between its landscapes and the quality of its preserved buildings.
Description
Set back from a main road that runs along the edge of the national forest, a forestry lane leads to a vast clearing protected by the steep slopes of the surrounding hills, which are crowned by plateaux. Dating back to 1170, the impressive charterhouse of the Carthusian Order was built for the monks of Saint-Bruno by Count Rotrou IV and later by Peter of Valois. Some of the structures rebuilt in the 18th century remain, as do the remnants of the perimeter wall and the garden. The complex is built on a strict axial plan with symmetries similar to those of classical residences.
As you approach the charterhouse from the north and drive past the slightly set back 3-hectare lake, the buildings gradually come into view: the porter’s lodge in the centre, flanked on the right by the lady chapel and on the left by the former dispensary, built symmetrically to the chapel. The complex is linked by a slightly curved wall. The former infirmary is located away from the dispensary, as is a more recent hangar further back used as a garage and storage space. After passing through the wooden gate, extended on either side by the hornbeam hedges that surround the buildings, a private driveway leads to the porter’s lodge. On the south side, in front of the this, a paved main courtyard bordered by box hedges links the three buildings. Further along, a formal French parterre is bordered by walls and a double row of hornbeams in line with a central paved driveway. The complex still has the same layout as in the 18th century. Extending from the buildings, and separated from the parterre by a pool that can be crossed via the old masonry bridge, lies the remaining parkland, bordered by the remains of the old perimeter wall. In the distance, in line with the porter’s lodge, the rectangular basin of the large cloister has been reconstructed, surrounded by the remains of the Carthusian monks' buildings, which once stretched out over a hundred metres.
As you approach the charterhouse from the north and drive past the slightly set back 3-hectare lake, the buildings gradually come into view: the porter’s lodge in the centre, flanked on the right by the lady chapel and on the left by the former dispensary, built symmetrically to the chapel. The complex is linked by a slightly curved wall. The former infirmary is located away from the dispensary, as is a more recent hangar further back used as a garage and storage space. After passing through the wooden gate, extended on either side by the hornbeam hedges that surround the buildings, a private driveway leads to the porter’s lodge. On the south side, in front of the this, a paved main courtyard bordered by box hedges links the three buildings. Further along, a formal French parterre is bordered by walls and a double row of hornbeams in line with a central paved driveway. The complex still has the same layout as in the 18th century. Extending from the buildings, and separated from the parterre by a pool that can be crossed via the old masonry bridge, lies the remaining parkland, bordered by the remains of the old perimeter wall. In the distance, in line with the porter’s lodge, the rectangular basin of the large cloister has been reconstructed, surrounded by the remains of the Carthusian monks' buildings, which once stretched out over a hundred metres.
The main dwelling
The former porter's lodge of the charterhouse, which was the first to be rebuilt by the Order in 1760, became the main residence of the estate in the 19th century. The four-storey building, with its elegant facades and arched French windows, is representative of the so-called "trois crayons" (three chalk) style, combining brick, dressed limestone and slate, all of which lend the building its polychrome appearance. On the north side, the sober elevation is enhanced by elaborate sculptures depicting the Virgin and Child, Saint Bruno, founder of the Order, and Saint John the Baptist, patron saint of hermit life, which crown the former carriage and pedestrian doors. The facade is flanked on either side by lower buildings of rendered rubble masonry with brick surrounds, dedicated at the time to the laundry, the chaplaincy and the dispensary. The current inhabitants have carried out extensive restoration work.
The ground floor
Once past what used to be the carriage entrance to the north, a transverse hallway, extended by a corridor, leads to all the rooms on the south-facing level following one another in a row with views over the park and its surroundings. Illuminated by two old French windows, the hallway floor is laid with square quarry tiles and features two concave recesses between the entrance door and the windows. There is a sitting room with hexagonal quarry tile flooring, a Louis XV marble fireplace, a casement window and a double French window opening onto a terrace. Another large sitting room accessed from the hallway via a man lock with double doors is currently used as a bedroom. It has an en-suite bathroom including a shower and toilet adjoining the west-facing gable wall. Two windows illuminate the room, which features oak herringbone parquet flooring and exposed oak ceiling beams and joists. A fireplace and two double-door oak cupboards complete the picture. The kitchen is in the centre, lit by a casement window, one double French window that opens onto the terrace and another that opens into the hallway revealing a view of the lake in the distance. The floor is laid with hexagonal quarry tiles and an L-shaped worktop abuts two walls. Next follows the dining room with its Directoire-style fireplace and four access doors, two from the hallway, one from the kitchen and one exterior door on the east gable side. Two windows light up this room. The floor is laid with square quarry tiles, while the oak ceiling beams and joists are exposed. There are also a laundry room and a lavatory down the hallway.
The first floor
From the ground-floor corridor, a 17th-century half-turn oak staircase with carved balusters leads to the two upper floors. A long corridor with quarry tile flooring leads to three bedrooms and a study facing south, as well as two bathrooms with toilets. The first bedroom, with a hardwood floor and exposed oak beams and joists, is lit by two windows. The second bedroom is lit by an arched window. The last bedroom, with its stone fireplace, features a woodwork alcove and a quarry tile floor, while the oak ceiling beams and joists are exposed. The study is lit by a window.
The second floor
A vast landing with hardwood flooring leads to a hallway with window serving two south-facing bedrooms on either side. The first bedroom has hardwood flooring, a fireplace, a window and its own bathroom with shower and toilet. The second enjoys the same features. There are two further bedrooms on this level, one of which has sloping ceilings and is lit by a hinged rooflight. It has an en-suite bathroom with toilet on the west gable. The fourth bedroom, on an upper intermediate-level accessed by a secondary staircase, is also in the roofspace and has two roof windows.
The third floor
From the landing on the previous floor, a secondary oak staircase provides access to the attic, which has a floor area of around 70 m² and is lit by two hinged rooflights. A bespoke painted wooden library with various compartments covers all the walls to a height of 2.20 m, including the cornices. Beyond its contemporary usefulness, this room is also a reminder of the fact that the Charterhouse library once contained 5,000 books and manuscripts, some of which are now kept at the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the British Library.
The lady chapel
Dating back to the 18th century, it provided a place for women to attend services, hence its name. It is of lime-rendered rubble masonry. Six slightly arched windows with brick surrounds and stained glass panes radiate an intense brightness. Impressive oak doors provide access from the north and south. There is also a third external door on the side. The roof is clad with local flat tiles and the roof timbers feature pointed barrel vaulting. The 120 m² floor is covered with a cement screed. The ceiling height peaks at around 10 m.
The outbuilding
Located to the west of the property, this was the former dispensary. In the 18th century, it was rebuilt to mirror the Ladies' Chapel, using the same materials, i.e. lime-rendered rubble masonry and brick, and is topped by a hip roof with period local tiles. Built over three levels, including the attic in the roofspace, the building has been converted and divided into a caretaker's lodge and a spare dwelling. Access to the caretaker's lodge is via a separate driveway, with the entrance on the facade behind the perimeter wall. On the ground floor, the caretaker's lodge comprises a sitting room with fireplace illuminated by three windows, one of whose walls follows the curve of the south-facing gable, a fitted kitchen and a scullery. Upstairs, a corridor leads to three bedrooms, a shower room and a lavatory. The caretakers can also use a workshop and the boiler room. The ensemble has a floor area of about 120 m². To the west of the building, a door leads to a storeroom, from where a staircase provides access to two bedrooms on the first floor, one measuring 30 m² and the other 20 m², each with its own bathroom and lavatory. These rooms could easily be reunited.
The guest house
Set back from the porter's lodge, the guest house can be accessed via the driveway that leads to the caretaker's house and the hangar. The former infirmary has been converted into a guest house. This single-storey building comprises a sitting room with hardwood flooring and a fireplace, a small kitchen, a shower room with toilet and a mezzanine bedroom. Three windows provide plenty of light.
The hangar, the kennel and the nursery
Off to the side, there is a hangar with three cubicles used as storerooms, two parking spaces and storage space for farming equipment at the rear. There is a small building used as a kennel and nursery next to the caretaker's house.
The grounds
Inscribed in the undulating landscape of meadows and woods forming part of the estate, the gardens have been reorganised inspired by old engravings. A vegetable patch has been created next to the orchard. A 3-hectare lake with a pontoon, dug by the Carthusian monks in their day, is the final part of a network of ponds used for rearing fish. It is now back in use. Around the buildings, groves of hornbeams, tulip trees, fig trees, rhododendrons and rosebushes flourish, and magnolias grace the walls of the lady chapel. Hundreds of daffodils cover the remains of the great cloister. Above the latter, there are several rectangular basins designed to collect rainwater. A large number of features are listed and protected, such as the remains of the surrounding walls, moats, milestones, the remains of towers and elements of the hydraulic system.
Our opinion
From the early 12th century to the present day, men and women have cultivated, built and sublimated this property in the heart of the Réno-Valdieu forest over nine centuries. A unique place of faith, magnificence, splendour and harmony. A meeting point of religion and history, the Chartreuse du Val-Dieu has seen the passage of centuries, monks and counts, bandits, the English and the French revolutionaries, but above all the craftsmen, gardeners, architects, painters and sculptors who have created, built, preserved, rebuilt many times over and brought this historic site to life.
Steeped in a well-documented history, the buildings and grounds have been meticulously restored to ensure their longevity.
Reference 146282
| Land registry surface area | 44 ha 1 a 30 ca |
| Main building surface area | 460 m2 |
| Number of bedrooms | 8 |
| Outbuilding surface area | 420 m2 |
| including refurbished area | 200 m2 |
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NB: The above information is not only the result of our visit to the property; it is also based on information provided by the current owner. It is by no means comprehensive or strictly accurate especially where surface areas and construction dates are concerned. We cannot, therefore, be held liable for any misrepresentation.
