Palace of the Counts of Maine

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Palace of the Counts of Maine

Location

Coordinates	48°00′27″N 0°11′51″E / 48.007453°N 0.19741°E / 48.007453; 0.19741

The Palace of the Counts of Maine also known as the Plantagenet Royal Palace is located in Le Mans in the heart of the Cité Plantagenet in the department of Sarthe in France. Initially the seat of comital power in Maine, of which Le Mans is the historic capital, it is now the town hall of Le Mans.

The palace first appears in written sources at the end of the 11th century, when it was primarily composed of a grand ceremonial hall, complemented during the Middle Ages by the addition of princely apartments and various other rooms. The palace also has its own chapel, the Saint-Pierre-la-Cour Collegiate Church, dating from the 9th century and housing relics of Scholastica of Nursia, patroness of Le Mans. Occupied by the hereditary Counts of Maine, and later by the Plantagenets who inherited the county in the 12th century, the palace was notably inhabited by Geoffrey Plantagenet, Henry II of England, and by his daughter-in-law Queen Berengaria of Navarre, widow of Richard the Lionheart. It was subsequently abandoned when Maine was retaken by the Capetians. The county was, however, given as an apanage to cadets of the royal family, who occasionally occupied the palace, especially during the 14th century. Over time, the building became primarily an administrative palace, with comital justice being held in the great hall, while other judicial offices occupied the princely apartments. Francis I gave part of the palace to the municipality of Le Mans, anticipating its transformation into the town hall.

Suffering from lack of maintenance, the palace was struck by a fire in 1720 and a storm in 1738. Restoration work was delayed, and the roof of the great hall collapsed in 1757. The authorities then decided to demolish it and construct a new L-shaped building, which partially incorporated the old walls of the hall, and which has since served as the town hall of Le Mans. However, various medieval elements, more or less modified, still attest to the medieval palace. The collegiate church was desacralized during the Revolution, partly demolished, and repurposed as a school and then offices in the 19th century.

The palace was built, like the cathedral, on the Gallo-Roman walls of Le Mans, specifically on its southern front. It possibly occupies the site of the former forum, as remains of a Gallo-Roman building were found beneath its foundations. The Saint-Pierre-la-Cour Collegiate Church was built in the 9th century to protect the relics of Scholastica, sister of Saint Benedict and patroness of Le Mans. Hugh I of Maine considered it his personal chapel in an act of 970, showing that the counts were already residing in the area at that time.^[1] The collegiate church was rebuilt in 1093 by Elias I of Maine.^[2]

The great hall of the palace was first mentioned in a document from 1090 to 1096. It is traditionally attributed to Elias I. The palace developed particularly under the Plantagenets, who came into possession of Maine in 1110 with the marriage of the hereditary count's heiress, Eremburga of Maine, to Fulk V of Anjou.^[1] Their son, Geoffrey V of Anjou, known as "Plantagenet," gave his name to the Angevin dynasty, which soon inherited Normandy and England. Although Le Mans became just another city in the Plantagenet empire, members of the dynasty retained particular ties to the palace: Geoffrey V married Empress Matilda there, and their son Henry II of England was born and regularly stayed there. When Maine returned to the Capetian royal domain in 1204, his daughter-in-law, Berengaria of Navarre, obtained Maine in usufruct and lived in Le Mans until her death in 1230.^[3]

After Berengaria's death, Maine, along with Anjou, was given as an apanage to a younger son of Louis VIII, and passed to his descendants. The palace in Le Mans was rarely occupied by this new dynasty, called the Anjou-Sicily dynasty, as it also acquired the throne of Naples. Charles II of Anjou added a massive two-level apse to the collegiate church, inspired by the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris. Bertrand du Guesclin and his troops halted in the great hall in 1370, on their return from the Battle of Pontvallain. Their stay caused damage, which was repaired after they left.^[1] The palace gradually became an administrative center, where the counts housed their judicial and civil services, without residing there.^[3]

Under the second apanage dynasty, the Valois, Le Mans regained the favor of its princes for a few decades. Charles of Valois built a pleasure residence at Gué de Maulny, which allowed him to reside near the forest, and his son, the future king Philip VI, founded a royal chapel there. The Gué de Maulny was later ravaged by the English, and Louis II of Anjou, count apanagiste of the Valois-Anjou dynasty, allowed the chaplains in 1357 to rebuild a chapel near the palace, at the location of today's Place du Hallai. The palace was also embellished and expanded, with the addition of promenade galleries and pleasure rooms around the great hall, including the Monkey Room and the Brittany Room.^[3]

These new rooms fell into ruin by the 15th century, as Maine had returned to the royal domain. In the absence of a comital court, the apartments were occupied by the presidial court and the tax office of Le Mans. The site of the Brittany Room was offered by Francis I to the municipality to build a new town hall, but lack of funds and the Religious Wars delayed the project. The council eventually settled in a lean-to against the great hall, near the Gros-Pilier tower.^[1]

In 1720, a fire, starting from the nearby prison, caused damage to the former princely apartments, and many archives were lost. In 1738, a storm destroyed the southern bay of the great hall. The palace was in poor condition, suffering from a lack of maintenance, and the various authorities sharing the premises were reluctant to carry out repairs. Although reconstruction was finally decided in 1744, the condition of the palace worsened in the following years, and the vaults of the great hall collapsed in 1757. The authorities opted for complete demolition. In its place, they built the present L-shaped building, incorporating parts of the northern and southern walls of the medieval palace.^[2] The new building housed the town hall, while the presidial moved into the old Gros-Pilier tower. The collegiate church was partially demolished during the Revolution, leaving only the apse.^[2]

The Gros-Pilier tower, now surmounted by an attic, is the last large medieval element still visible on the outside of the town hall, although various medieval walls and structures are also integrated into the newer building.^[3]

Palace of the Counts of Maine

External links

References

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