CHAPELLE SAINT JOSEPH DU CHÊNE

Villedieu-la-Blouère boasts a chapel and a remarkable oak tree, estimated to be 2,000 years old. In 1856, Father Louis Lamoureux suggested to Abbé Peltier, the first parish priest of Villedieu-la-Blouère, that a statue of St. Joseph be placed in the trunk of the remarkable oak, as it had a deep cavity. During a first pilgrimage, organized in 1856, a statue was affixed to a granite altar: "On August 24, 1856, the young parish of Villedieu-la-Blouère worshipped Saint-Joseph-du-Chêne, a thousand-year-old tree with a monumental trunk, hollowed out by time, at the heart of which was placed a statue of Saint Joseph, the patron saint of the commune's craftsmen. The modest altar was replaced by a chapel, inaugurated on August 26, 1859. As pilgrims flocked to the site, a second chapel was added and consecrated in 1871. Source: Arbres remarquables en Maine-et-Loire, éditions CAUE 49. The following year, a small brick oratory was built around the old tree cavity. A larger chapel was built between 1866 and 1869, with the help of the people of Villedieu-la-Blouère. It was consecrated on August 30, 1899. The same clergyman crowned the statue on August 29, 1906, in the presence of 25,000 people. We invite you to push open the door of the chapel to admire the white stone statue of St. Joseph with the Child God, gently asleep. To book a guided tour, contact the Villedieu la Blouère town hall or the Ôsez Mauges tourist office.