History
Lassay has not always been a tranquil spot to relax; it has had its share of violence and disarray through the centuries. Here are just a few of the tales of Lassay through the ages :
Françoise Gaudérian was just a teenager and working as a maid to rich Vendéens, when she became caught up in a flight towards Granville during the "Terror". Somewhere not far from Lassay, she was separated from the Vendéen army and left alone in the Mayenne coutryside.A traveller spotted her, delivered her to Julien Thuault, the mayor of Ribay, who took pity on her and took her in. She helped out his wife in the house and on the farm and became well-loved by the family.
After several months, several indiscretions in her speech provoked suspicions amongst the neighbours. "Why has Thuault gone looking for a maid in Vendée when there are so many here needing work"?She was rapidly denounced to Volcler, the mayor of Lassay. Volcler was a former curé, extremely unpleasant, hated the mayor of Ribay with a passion and was, at the time, public prosecutor. Which meant, basically, HE was in charge of the guillotine!
He and his bloodthirsty cronies issued an arrest warrant for Thuault and Françoise, which also implied that she had become his mistress. Even in those days, word got out before the gendarmes could arrive and Thuault suggested fleeing. (Lasséens seem to know everything which is going on, often BEFORE it has gone on!) Françoise refused, telling him to save himself, but she would remain, knowing she had to die. He got away and she gave herself up to the law.
Françoise was taken to Lassay and locked up in the prison in the place de Boil, which today is a lovely house beside the château and overlooking the lake. Volcler was away in Laval, helping heads to roll in the name of the Consitution.
The little emigrant won the hearts of most of the population of Lassay because of her courage and faith and very few wanted to see her killed.On 4th March 1794, Volcler returned to Lassay and set up the guillotine on the Place de la Pointe; this is close to the crossroads where rue d'Ambrières meets rue du Château. It was opposite the present site of the Dépôt des Ventes, because at that time the present road to Couternes didn't exist. In 1794, the main road was the rue Cébaudière (under the arch and leading up to the cemetery.)
Françoise was told that, during the trial, she should announce herself to be pregnant; she would be released immediately. She refused vehemently stating she had committed no crime, was still pure and would not lie. She was thereupon summarily sentenced to death. Françoise and five other unfortunates were guillotined immediately to the disgust and outcry of the crowd; to such an extent that Volcler and his companions considered it wise to get out of town immediately and head for Ambrières!
No matter how many horses they brought out to move the bodies on a cart to the cemetery, they all refused to budge. The corpses were eventually moved to a piece of land, still known as "Lande des malheureux", and buried.Today, there is a small oratory just off the road to Tuboeuf; soon, it is hoped, there will be easier access and a recognised footpath enabling visitors to visit freely
In 1639, the château became the property of Isaac de Madaillan.
His great-grandson, Léon, later built the Hôtel de Lassay in Paris which is today the seat of the National Assembly.
In 2009 the President of the National Assembly paid Lassay-les-Châteaux a visit, met many of the local dignitaries, and extended an invitation to them to come and visit him in Paris.
My invite was lost in the post!
François Migoret was born in Lassay in 1727. He became a priest in 1753; his first parish was Oisseau and later moved to Rennes-en-Grenouilles. Strangely, one of his latin students there was Volcler, the sadistic killer during the Terror and future mayor of Lassay.
On 12 July 1790 during the French Revolution, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy (French: "Constitution civile du clergé") passed a law that subordinated the Roman Catholic Church in France to the French government. The government required all clergy to swear an oath of loyalty to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy.
On 25th February 1791, the municipality of Rennes-en-Grenouilles announced that the parish priest, Françoise Migoret-Lamberdière, would swear the oath (which had still not been condemned by the Pope, Pius VI.) In fact, he DID swear the oath two days later, but never signed it and at some point, he must have renounced the oath because he was immediately persecuted by the authorities.
In June of the following year, he was imprisonned in Laval with 13 other such priests.
On January 21st 1794, the anniversary of the death of Louis XVI, all 14 priests were guillotined in Laval. A young boy in the crowd watched the sky throughout the executions and, at each head rolling, said he could see a bright cross fall from the sky. People journeying back to Laval during the executions said there was a bright cross hanging in the sky over Laval.
The bodies were buried without ceremony outside Laval on the road to Entrammes; the authorities often had to chase people from the scene in the following years, people who came to pay hommage to the "Laval Martyrs".
On July 10th 1814, M Gesbert, priest of Avesnières in Laval requested the bodies be transferred to his church for a decent burial and in 1816 this was carried out.
In 1917, an ecclesiastical tribunal began to investigate the possibility of beatification of the Laval Martyrs. It wasn't until 1955 that Pope Pius XII declared the 14 to be "Blessed".
Lassay honoured François Migoret-Lamberdière by naming a street after him. This is the road with the S-bend between rue du Château and route de Domfront.
This famous impressionist painter was born in the West Indies in 1830.
He was a friend of Piette and often visited him at Montfoucault, where they sought inspiration and painted together.
In 1870, at the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian war, he and his family left to stay at Montfoucault and his second daughter was born there.
Unfortunately, she died after just a month and a half and he was compelled to leave quickly for London.
Later he resumed his stays at Monfoucault until the death of his friend Piette in 1878.He was never to return.
An Impressionist painter (1826 -1878) who lived and painted at Montfoucault, a small settlement not far from Melleray-la-Vallée.
Living amonst the Mayennais, he nevertheless didn't appear to have a very high opinion of them: "Ces idiots de gens riches qui habitent dans ce pays. Pas un tableau, pas une statue ni un buste à dix lieues à la ronde. Aussi béotiens que le paysan, aussi ignares. Chevaux, voitures, chiffons pour les dames, chasse quand vient la saison, voilà les graves préoccupations de cette classe éclairée"
He struck up a friendship with Camille Pissaro, another Impressionist of the late 19th century, and the latter often came to stay with him at Montfoucault.
Here above is a portrait of Piette painted by Pissaro.
Among his works are "Le marché de Lassay", "Le cirque Boureau à Lassay", "La moisson à Montfoucault", "La Mayenne à Laval".
Victor Hugo was a great traveller; nowadays he would be quite a tourist.
In the summer of 1836, he and his mistress Juliette Drouet, an actress, set out from Paris on a trip to Mont St Michel, spending some time sightseeing in Bas-Maine.
They were accompanied by Célestin Nanteuil, who was to illustrate later most of the writer's works. They arrived in Lassay around 5 o'clock in the afternoon on the 20th June.
Victor seemed to have been enchanted by the place, "J'ai vu Lassay, charmante petite ville demi-sauvage, plantée tout au beau milieu des chemins de traverse, qui a trois vieux châteaux, dont deux admirables que j'ai dessinés........ Le troisième n'a plus que quelques ruines situées au milieu des arbres les plus farouches du monde."
They came up to the Barbican gate of the château, demanded entrance for the night, and were peremptorily chased from the entrance by the concierge.Maybe because they were travel-weary and dusty after their journey, or maybe because he had instructions not to allow anyone in who looked a tad scruffy. Who knows? The fact remained; they were told in no uncertain terms to get lost. "A dame nanin, passez vot'chemin, les mait'ont défendu de recevoir les vagabonds"
Deprived of baronial comfort for the night, they were forced to go back into town and stay at the "Cheval Blanc" (The White Horse Inn). The inn is still there today, on the corner of Grande Rue and rue Dorée and is now known as ...... wait for it ...... Pub Victor Hugo!
Copyright © 2012 - Paul Climance