LE BOURG DES MOUTIERS EN RETZ

The main square is a meeting place for the population but it is also a place full of history. The Romanesque facade of the church, the lantern of the dead, the small green park, the old houses which frame it as in Brittany, are the delight of the monasterians as well as the tourists. Stroll through the small streets of the village and discover the wonders that are hidden there. Stroll along the seaside and admire the small fishermen's houses with their evocative names. During the summer season, take advantage of the numerous animations that make this place live. A BIT OF HISTORY ON THE PLACE DE L'ÉGLISE MADAME The parish of Moutiers-en-Retz, whose cradle was Prigny, owes its name to the two monasteries that were established there in the 11th century: Priory of the Benedictine nuns of St. Mary of Prigny, of the Ronceray of Angers : church Madame Priory of the Benedictines of St Sauveur de Redon of the Abbey of Redon : church St Pierre The physiognomy of the village has changed a lot since a good century. The large walls of the Ronceray priory, which can be found behind the town hall, were at the time the same as the present low walls and overhung the road in front of the Café du Vignoble, then the Hotel de la Boule d'Or, and the newsagent's store, which replaced the communal oven, a square construction with a slate-covered chapel frame. The demands of commerce necessitated the destruction of the banal oven, where everyone, under the old regime, came to bake their bread, in exchange for a sixteenth of the fee to the local prioress. On the side of the square, the high wall of the Priorate passed only a few meters behind the remains of the Church of Madam, a church whose memory is recalled by the statue of the Virgin, erected about a hundred years ago, and the paving stones on the ground. The streets of the village, paved with white stones taken from the beaches, were very narrow. The cemetery located in the center of the town complicated the situation. Surrounded by low walls, blocked between the parish church of St. Peter and the remains of the church of Madame, it was dominated by the 7-meter high Lantern of the Dead, built in the middle. Having become too small, an ossuary was built at the bell tower. Then, at the end of the war, the cemetery was moved outside the town. The houses located in front of the bell tower have character, especially the Manor House, a building dating back to the 16th century. It was built by the tax prosecutor of the priory of Ronceray. This character, named Jean Le Jau (Jau means rooster in local language), was a patron for the Moutiers. He paid for the altarpiece in the parish church with his own money. In compensation, he had himself painted as Saint Peter receiving the keys of Christ. This house was inherited by the Gallimard family. Yvonne Gallimard spent the end of her life there. As for the square, everything changed in 1923 when Alexandre Benard became mayor. The new mayor had plans to embellish the place de l'Eglise Madame. The parish priest's garden in front of the rectory was cut back, and the large walls to the west were torn down, which considerably aired the town. Under the mandate of Joseph Ferré, small walls were rebuilt, reminiscent of those in the cemetery. *Extracts from the works of Emile Boutin, on sale at the Tourist Office of Moutiers-en-Retz.