A 300-m² manor house with an orangery, outbuildings and a landscaped garden, in the south of the Orne area, in the former Perche province, in Bellême
A 300-m² manor house with an orangery, outbuildings and a landscaped garden, in the south of the Orne area, in the former Perche province, in Bellême.
This property is located in the former Perche province and eponymous natural park, in the small, characterful town of Bellême that boasts well-preserved architectural heritage. The landscape of the former Perche province, created in the 12th century following the merger of the county of Mortagne and the earldoms of Bellême and Nogent-le-Rotrou, is typified by a succession of wooded countryside and small hills, topped by beech and oak forests. All essential shops and services can be reached on foot, while Bellême golf course is also nearby. By road, Paris can be reached in 2 hours, via the N12 major road or the A11 motorway. The nearest regional express station, with trains to Paris-Montparnasse, is 20 kilometres away.
This former 'royal court', which became a 'national court' after the French Revolution, is now a private enclave in very close proximity to Bellême's main square. Two houses occupy this plot. One boasts 16th-century origins, while the other dates from the Directoire period, whose history is well documented. The second, east-west facing house is entirely built over vaulted cellars and boasts three storeys, the last of which is beneath the rafters. The lime rendered walls are topped by a roof made of local flat tiles which is punctuated by dormers and chimney stacks. The window frames as well as the cornice are made of blocks of white ashlar. The windows are fitted with painted shutters. The walled north-south oriented garden can be reached through the entrance porch, is rectangular in shape and has two different levels. Opposite the house, there is an orangery with canted walls and wide windows. An outbuilding stands perpendicularly to the orangery and is used as a garage, log store and workshop. The property is completed by a separate guests' house that can be reached from the square.
The manor house
The garden-level floor
After entering through the porch gate from the square and crossing the inner courtyard, the double-leaf entrance door opens into a Directoire period style vestibule. It leads, to the right, into the lounge and, to the left, to the stairwell and then the kitchen, with the dining room opposite. All these rooms can be reached through double-leaf doors. The ceiling height is 3.20 metres and the floor is paved with period terracotta tiles and taco tiling, except in the lounge where there is oakwood stripped flooring with marquetry patterns. The lounge faces east onto the garden and is bathed in light through two windows with interior shutters. It also possesses a marble fireplace topped by an overmantel. Light streams into the rectangular dining room through two west-facing windows, while a wood burning stove stands in an alcove. The fitted kitchen boasts a fireplace and two west-facing windows as well as a door to the outside.
The first floor
At the top of the half-turn oakwood staircase, the landing opens onto a large hallway and successively leads to a bedroom with an en suite shower room and separate lavatory, an office and another bedroom with an en suite bathroom and lavatory. The bedrooms and office boast wood stripped flooring, are generously bathed in light through two windows and possess a fireplace. The office could quite easily be transformed into an extra bedroom.
The second floor
The central corridor on this level leads to five bedrooms on either side. One of the bedrooms boasts an en suite bathroom and a lavatory, while another is adjacent to an office. A shower room and a lavatory complete this level. Light pours into all the rooms through west or east facing dormer windows.
The basement
Beneath the entire surface of the house, there are three large, vaulted cellars with high ...
