Attractions and Places To See around Villiers-Saint-Frédéric - Top 20

Very beautiful cycle path right in the continuity of the Grand Canal of the Versailles gardens. ☺

Many houses of worship in France bear the title “Notre-Dame” (in German “Our Lady”) and are therefore dedicated to the Blessed Mother Mary. Sometimes the specific patronage is made clear by an additional name, such as “Assumption of Mary” or “Immaculate Conception”. Here in Les Mesnuls, the church or chapel bears the suffix "Notre-Dame du Chêne", i.e. "to the oak". This means that it is not an event in the life of the Mother of God that is referred to in the patronage, but rather a tree that gave the immediate surroundings of the church a formative shape. In fact, you can see a tree on the left and right of the building.

Church located in the Yvelines in Beynes, in the west of Paris. It dates from the 13th century and has seen various demolitions and reconstructions throughout history. Today located in the city center, you can stop there for a supply or simply catch your breath.

Super beautiful, and well highlighted by the municipality.

From the 8th century, Beynes is a land owned by the abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. It is therefore monks who clear and cultivate the land of Beynes. They build a first place of worship, probably in wood. At the beginning of the 11th century, King Robert II the Pious (972 / 1031) gave the fiefdom of Beynes to Guillaume de Hainaut, first lord of the Montfort family. In 1072, it is attested that Beynes depends on the priory of Saint Laurent de Montfort-L'Amaury. In 1159, a papal bull from Pope Adrian IV, the only English pope in history, attests that King Robert the Pious granted the patronage of the church and the main tithe to Saint Magloire Abbey in Paris. The construction of the current church is dated from the middle of the 12th century, date of the appearance of the parish, consecrated to Saint Martin in 1183. The church has undergone various episodes of demolitions and alterations over the centuries, and appears to have been partly rebuilt in 1773, then remodeled and extended in the 1830s to 1880s. Subsequently, numerous consolidations and repairs took place. The choir, the oldest part, dates from the 12th century, while the nave and the side aisles on the basilica plan are from the 18th and 19th centuries. The Virgin and Child: polychrome stone statue from the 14th century, listed as a historical monument since 1907. The tabernacle: the 18th century sculpted wooden altar, surmounted by a 17th century altarpiece, has been listed as a historical monument since 1907. This tabernacle was sculpted by monks who reproduced certain elements of the portal of the Saint Gervais church from Paris. The two small wooden statues adorn the sides: Saint Vincent and Saint Nicolas. The capitals of the choir: vestiges of the primitive church of the 12th century have been updated: columns, Romanesque capitals, departure of a double roller arch and slightly broken Romanesque arcades.

The castle of Beynes is installed in the bottom of a valley. Its construction dates back to the 11th century. It first had a military role at a time when the course of the Mauldre constituted a line of defense of the royal domain, to the west, in particular against the English during the Hundred Years' War. In the 15th century, the castle having lost its strategic importance due to the extension of the royal domain, Robert d'Estouteville, chamberlain of King Charles VII and owner of the premises, made it undergo some modifications, by demolishing the keep and adapting the nascent artillery fortifications. In the 16th century, in 1536, the estate was ceded to Diane de Poitiers (Madame de Valentinois) by Henri II, her royal lover2. She had a new dwelling built by Philibert Delorme, author of the Château des Tuileries, the Château d'Anet or part of that of Chenonceau. The castle is among the first listed with a framework that was a precursor to the principle of glued laminated timber, the technique of which was therefore invented by this great architect3,4. In the 17th century, in 1688, ladies of the high aristocracy gathered there around the mystical Madame Guyon. On October 4, they organized a meeting at the château between Madame Guyon and their spiritual director, the Abbé de Fénelon5. This one becomes one of the most fervent disciples of Madame Guyon6. In the 18th century, the ruins of the castle served for a time as the setting for the English park laid out by the Phélypeaux de Pontchartrain who then owned it. An estimate for its restoration is produced7, its cost probably convinces the owners to leave it as it is. Abandoned then dismantled, it even serves as a quarry for the construction of the village. In 1967, the Château de Beynes was bought by the municipality, which was responsible for saving the estate, which was then buried by vegetation. From 1995 to 1999, it was excavated and then benefited from reinforcement works. In 2014, all the remains were classified as historical monuments 8. At the beginning of June 2016, heavy rains caused the flooding of the moat9,10, and the collapse of a section of the wall. Work, in the form of a subsidized and sponsored volunteer site, is underway to stop its deterioration and allow its access to the public11.

In the 16th century, on the road which links Les Mesnuls to Montfort l´Amaury, an oak tree rises, the trunk of which houses an image of the Virgin Mary, highly venerated in the region. In 1646 an oratory was erected there. This chapel is erected on an important place of pilgrimage, frequented in particular by Queen Marie-Antoinette. The current building replaces the first chapel destroyed during the Revolution.

Quite complicated with the head wind but the road is still super pleasant