A brief introduction to the architectural pearl of the Vendée... City of Art and History  –

Like the rest of the Vendée, the area of what is today the beautiful city of Fontenay-Le-Comte has seen settlements since prehistoric times. The land was rich with game for the hunting, and at the time the area bordered the Gulf of Poitou which meant abundant fishing.

For a long time, Fontenay was a port on the ocean. On the small islands dotting the Gulf, abbeys were taking shape under Roman rule. Throughout the next centuries, monks used an ingenious way to claim the land and make it fertile, creating a vast landscape of canals used for transportation and irrigation known today as the Marais Poitevin.

The city must have been beautiful even then. In the La Fontaine neighbourhood, Roman villas with the famous clay rooftiles, baths, and inns coloured the hillside. A thriving trade was done on what is now known as the Place Bélliard. Lord Thiverçay, first leader of the city, was the owner of the Mines de Melle, silver mines located between Niort and Limoges which can still be viewed and might be worth a daytrip.  Thiverçay also struck coin and enforced a tax on Fontenay.

When the Vikings arrived with their mighty ships, they raided and plundered the city. In the mid-tenth century, the area was upset again, this time by several earthquakes which changed the landscape further.

In the 11^th Century, the Counts of Poitou put their stamp on the city by building a large castle atop the cliffs hugging the Vendée river (the original was probably a wooden castle). In the 12^th century, after the death of King Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine (1122-1204), born in nearby Nieul-sur-l'Autise, Queen of France and England renounced the vast territories she had inherited upon her father’s death, in favour of her son Richard the Lionheart (1157-1199). Her possessions included the castle of Fontenay.

The Kings of England ruled the territory (Plantagenet at the time) until 1259. In the Treaty of Paris, King Henry III of England (1207-1272, son of Cathérine de Médici) surrendered it to France. This territory consisted of Normandy, Maine, Anjou, and Poitou. The village prospered in the thirteenth century. Fontenay was officially named the capital of Lower Poitou, becoming a stronghold with ramparts and turrets. The ruins of the medieval castle can be admired in Le Parc Baron (more info below).

Prosperity suffered under the weight of the Hundred Years war (14th Century 1337-1453), returning in the 15th Century under Charles VII (1422-1461) with support of Jeanne d'Arc and regionally from everal lords of Poitou like Arthur Richemont, Gilles de Rais, Dunois de Mervent, and Amaury Lord Velluire. Admire a beautifully preserved half-timber house from the start of the 15th Century, on Rue des Loges. At the height of the Renaissance period and into the 17th Century Fontenay-le-Comte regained its splendor. From this time dates the Bélliard square with its arcade homes. Mullioned windows, triangular pediments (originally found in ancient Greece and Rome and re-invented in the Renaissance), wrought iron balconies, and asymmetric porticoes became a part of Fontenay's amazing architecture.

It must have been a colourful time in the city's history! At the corner of Rue de la Fontaine and Rue Goupilleau, admire the Fountain of Quatre-Tias (1542), a four-spout Renaissance fountain inscribed with the city's motto: Fons Fontanacum Felicium Ingeniorum Scaturigo ... Fontenay, fountain and source of wits.  Tias is patois (French dialect) for spout. The fountain is not original - it was restored by Octave de Rochebrun  around 1898.

In the second half of the 16th Century, Fontenay did see conflict related to the Wars of Religion. From this time period dates the fortified Maison Billaud on Rue Gaston Guillemet, which was rumoured to have underground escape routes to Protestant as well as Catholic sides. An interesting twist on keeping the options open!

In the 17th Century the immense project of drying the marshes that started in Roman times, was finally finished.

With the land fertile and boosting local trade, the King of France took note. Existing abbeys were deemed royal, Richelieu was appointed Cardinal with Fontenay the Royal Seat. Taxes were imposed on the poor - thus, also the abbeys. Local Huguenot (French Protestants) were often forcefully converted to Catholicism, forcing them to flee the area. Since many of them were merchants, and while the nobles remained exempt from taxes, Fontenay faced economic collapse. 

An interesting side-note for our local Canadian and American friends: many Acadians, descendants of the French Protestants who fled the region to settle in Nova Scotia (starting in 1604), and later in New Brunswick, came from the region of Poitou. After the Acadians were deported by the British beginning in 1755, some sought refuge in Quebec and a large number were deported to Louisiana in 1785 and eventually became known as Cajuns.

Back in France, the 18th Century was the time of enlightenment , but harvests were poor, the population was hungry causing riots and looting - leading to the Revolution. Following his rise to power, Napoleon made La-Roche-sur-Yon the area's capital city. After many centuries of prosperity and power, Fontenay-le-Comte became a forlorn and forgotten city. The impressive Tour Rivalland (1881 - Rivalland Tower) was built just outside of  the Château de Terre-Neuve by Gustave Rivalland (1824-1881). The tower is constructed of concrete and decorated with Masonic mosaics.

The 19th Century saw Octave de Rochebrune living and working at Château de Terre-Neuve (Newfoundland). His etches are still revered and highly sought-after pieces of art. The copper plates can be admired at the castle museum (see info below). In the 20th century, famous Belgian author Georges Simenon (1903-1989) spent WWII at Terre-Neuve, where he continued to write the popular Inspetor Maigrait stories. In an interesting twist, this tower was occupied by the Germans during the war while Simenon was suspected of being a German collaborator, causing the author to be under investigation towards the end of the war.

Route Planning and Preparation – 

Morning: sightseeing and market. shopping bag and a cooler/ice packs. 
Noon: picnic on the ramparts.
Afternoon: visit to Chateau de Terre Neuve