Sainte-Suzanne en Mayenne

Sainte-Suzanne appeared as a small cluster of stones in a largely agricultural landscape of fields and farms.

A sign led to the “Cité Mediévale,” (Medieval City) and to the chateau where we parked. Behind the chateau we passed through a simple, lovely, wrought-iron gate into a garden.

A parapet to our left overlooked the entire region; opposite the parapet were houses whose slate roofs

were level with the grounds that made an unusual border to the garden.





Excavations around the chateau revealed traces of a settlement in the 6th c BCE. The site was probably chosen for its natural defenses on three sides, steep hills that would have offered some protection from invaders.

A stone quadrangular dungeon is the oldest remaining part of the medieval city, begun in the late 10th c. It is 62 feet high and its walls are 10 feet thick. Built into them are sinks, wardrobes, latrines, and a room that held the treasury.

The dungeon did indeed protect the town. In 1083, William the Conqueror, seeking to increase his holdings, laid siege to the town. The local governor who owned the land, Hubert de Beaumont, took refuge in the dungeon with his family. They resisted for four years; the siege failed.

The town prospered and ramparts were built in the 13th c with towers and two entrances to the dungeon and its base. One gate to the city (“porte du guichet”) was defended by a portcullis and a drawbridge that led to the main street.



Sainte-Suzanne suffered in 1425 during the Hundred Years War, and again a century later, from the wars of religion. In 1608, construction of living quarters in the chateau began;

the residence reflected the Renaissance style of the region.

Today the chateau dominates the promontory and is visible from some of the narrow passages in the village. The houses are all made of stone.

One is more charming than the next: here a half-timbered section is preserved, there a flowering vine curls gracefully over a façade, another has pale blue window frames and a door over which a vine covers the light stone.

It can take a long time to walk around this tiny village!

Somewhat surprising and in contrast to the quaint atmosphere, were decorative panels hung from the walls of some buildings.

Such “signs” used to relate to the owner in some way, but here, they are the creation of a contemporary artist (Jean-Claude Flornoy) who finds inspiration in images on the tarot cards he collects.

A path, called the Promenade de la Poterne after the name of one gate to the town, now runs outside the ramparts.

The path did not exist during the Middle Ages for it would have been dangerous; in case of siege, assailants might have used it to approach the town and dig tunnels under the walls. Today the views of the landscape, including the river and forest nearby, look somewhat like it was in the middle ages with hedges that owners planted to mark the parcels of land they owned. The area is quite peaceful.