Manoir de la Fresnaye, Medieval manor estate in Saint-Germain-de-la-Coudre, France.
The Manoir de la Fresnaye is a stone manor complex with three round towers topped by conical shingled roofs, a main building with a steep hipped shingled roof, and a smaller round structure with a stone dome. Its tall central tower, with faded ochre and grey stone and slit openings, rises beside a light stone facade pierced by six arched windows. A Renaissance gallery and a ground-floor Renaissance fireplace in the great tower are among its protected elements.
The manor was built in the 14th century and remained standing through the Hundred Years War without major destruction. Successive modifications were added over the centuries, shaping its final form through the 19th century.
The manor's name comes from the lieu-dit la Frênaie, the ash-tree place. Inside the great tower, the Renaissance gallery and the ground-floor Renaissance fireplace were classified as monuments historiques by decree of 8 September 1988, separately from the rest of the building.
The manor is a private property restored since 1977 and again from 1994 by a new owner, so visits depend on the owner's agreement rather than fixed opening hours. The grounds lie at the lieu-dit la Frênaie in Saint-Germain-de-la-Coudre, in the Orne department of Normandy. The Renaissance gallery and the ground-floor Renaissance fireplace of the great tower have been classified as monuments historiques since 8 September 1988.
The manor is reputed to be the oldest surviving manor in the Perche, spared from burning during the Hundred Years' War. Its keep was truncated under Louis-Philippe and Napoleon III, and the estate served as a working farm until the mid-20th century.
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