Attractions and Places To See around Ménestreau-En-Villette - Top 12

On 12/05/2026, the trail along the Cosson, starting from Boucles 02 and 16, near the castle, is impassable. Works?

The parish church, dedicated to Saint Stephen, belonged in the 13th century to the Abbey of Micy near Orléans. It was rebuilt at the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries. It consists of a long nave, 35 meters in length and over 9 meters wide, ending in a three-sided apse. Its walls, built of rubble and rendered brick, are reinforced by dressed stone buttresses. The cornice at the base of the roof and the window and door surrounds are also made of molded dressed stone. The double-lancet windows with trefoil topped by a figure-eight shaped bilobe are identical, except for those on the west facade and the central window, which are more elaborate, featuring three lancets while retaining the same molding. An addition was made at the beginning of the 16th century. On the north side stands an imposing seigneurial chapel and a massive bell tower with eight flat buttresses, two on each face, all built of brick. Ashlar is reserved for the buttresses of the bell tower and alternates with brick in the buttresses of the chapel; it is used for framing the openings, the windows, and the sloping sides of the chapel's gable. A lozenge-shaped decoration of black bricks on a background of pink bricks has been preserved on the lower level and on part of the gable of this chapel. The chapel was the only vaulted part of the church, undoubtedly financed by Jean or Claude d'Estampes, lord of La Ferté-Nabert. The rest of the building was covered by a panelled vault, the replacement of which with a false ribbed vault of plaster resulted in the disappearance of the tie beams and king posts and ruined the structural integrity of the roof frame. This artificial, cold, and superficial decoration of the upper sections deprives the interior of the interplay of tie beams and king posts. These, in their rhythm, corresponded to the lateral openings and reflected the robust structure of the timber frame that protected the building. A comprehensive restoration is planned. Initially, for the north chapel—masonry, roofing, and timber frame—the French Heritage Society (Sauvegarde de l’Art français) provided €30,490 in 2001.

At this location, during sanitation work in 1968, a certain number of ancient and medieval remains were unearthed, witnesses to the occupation of this site since Antiquity. Vienne-en-Val is also located on the Roman road from Orléans to Sancerre. The presence of two churches, one Merovingian and one dating from the 10th century, was revealed by surveys. The remains found, in particular sculpted blocks reused in these later constructions, attest that a sanctuary from the Early Roman Empire existed in the area but its location has not yet been discovered. You can discover these ancient blocks nearby, in a community hall which serves as a lapidary museum.

A granite monument displaying a cross of Lorraine faces the entrance to the Château du Cerf-Bois here and recalls one of the greatest tragedies in the history of the Sologne resistance. It was erected in memory of 12 Parisian students shot by the Nazis on June 10, 1944 in the clearing that you can reach by following the path in front of you. Another monument was erected in this clearing, accompanying the steles in memory of each of the young men. These young Parisian students were part of a large wave of departures for the maquis following the call of June 6, 1944 by Marshal de Gaulle. On June 9, they reached their first stop towards the Corrèze maquis: the Château de Cerf-Bois, where Madame de Labeau welcomed them. Another group of students was welcomed the same evening at the By farm, about fifteen kilometers away. However, this information having been obtained by the Gestapo, they were apprehended on June 10 at 5 a.m., searched, questioned then shot, apart from a traitor hidden among them and affiliated with the Paris Gestapo. He indicated to the Germans that the sketch found on one of the students corresponded to three resistance gathering places, including the Château de Cerf-Bois. A raid was immediately organized at the castle and the 12 young men who were there were executed. As for the third place indicated on the sketch, the Château des Grand-Bois, 14 students and the owner of the premises were also found and deported to Dachau, where eight died.

Beautiful church in the heart of Chaumont-sur-Tharonne, on a pretty well maintained square. The houses around the square are also worth a look.

The construction of the castle was undertaken in 1625 by Henri I de la Ferté-Senneterre. The residence surrounded by a moat stands on the banks of the Cosson river. You can explore the castle, the gardens, the 40-hectare natural park, or even taste their famous honey madeleines which are prepared in the kitchens.

The water in individual lock sections is probably not always there. But the path is super paved and wide enough for 2 cyclists 👍🏻

The castle, surrounded by moats, consists of the small castle, in the left part of the current main building, built between 1590 and 1620 and the large house (or large castle) and its two pavilions which frame the entrance dating from the 17th century. century. The 40-hectare park was laid out as a formal garden in the 1630s and then changed to a landscaped park from 1822. In 1992, the garden was redesigned as it was in the 18th century. It has seven arms of water, including the waters of the Cosson. There are hornbeams, bald cypresses and an araucaria The castle stables date from the 19th century. In the large castle, there is an entrance hall decorated with a Diana and a Venus of Arles, a large living room and an office which precedes the bedroom of the Countess O'Gorman, a large dining room, as well as than the kitchens of the castle, located in the basement. The orangery has been converted into a reception room