The best road cycling routes around Fresneaux-Montchevreuil

A charming village on the slopes of the Viosne with its castle and adjacent church.

A wall now traces its original layout onto the ground, offering visitors a glimpse into its religious and architectural past.

In the 11th century, a chapel was built by the prior of Bézu-le-Long, dependent on the abbey of Croix Saint-Leufroy, consisting of a nave of 5 bays lit by narrow lancets. A stone choir was added in the 12th century. Around 1335, the chapel became a parish church. Around 1780, it was enlarged by two bays and its direction was reversed. The entrance is now through the choir, itself installed in the western part. Large bays were opened at this time. The new choir is adorned with an altarpiece executed in 1760 by Jacques Carbonnier (from Gisors). The painting of the baptism of Christ is by Charles Jean Baptiste Duchêne, painter in Gisors

A military fortress with a defensive purpose, built in 1097, during the reign of William the Conqueror's second son, Gisors Castle marks a major page in the medieval history of Normandy. This fortification was intended to protect the Norman possessions of the King of England against the ambitions of the King of France. A true border place and eastern lock of Normandy, it was part of a vast campaign of fortifications in the Epte Valley, the natural boundary between the two kingdoms.

We know of Saints Gervais and Protais that they were Christian martyrs in the 2nd century in Milan. At the time, the Roman Empire forced all its subjects to worship the emperor, which was unacceptable to Christians. If they refused, they were crucified or sent to the arena to be devoured by lions between gladiatorial fights. Thus, Saint Ambrose, bishop of Milan, found them, in 386, buried side by side. This great bishop affirmed that they had been martyrs by fidelity to their baptism. He even added "They are of a prodigious size, such as one was in ancient times." Their cult reached Gaul where a large number of churches were dedicated to them.

The Cathedral of Beauvais is one of the most important Gothic churches in France 🇫🇷!

The parish church of Saint-Gervais Saint-Protais was consecrated in 1119 by Pope Calixtus 11. This Romanesque church saw its nave ravaged by fire in 1123. It was rebuilt in 1160. Thanks to funding from Queen Blanche of Castile, the people of Gisors built a Gothic choir, consecrated in 1249. It was built according to the Chartres model, common at the time in Ile-de-France, with a three-level elevation: large arcades, triforium and high windows pierced with oculi. Thanks to funding from charitable brotherhoods and trade corporations, the church underwent multiple transformations from the end of the 15th century with the addition of radiating chapels and an ambulatory at choir level. Entrusted to the Grappins, a family of architects from Vexin, the work continued in the 15th century with the reconstruction of the nave and the chapels of the side aisles in flamboyant Gothic style, then of the façade decorated with Renaissance motifs.

It is always nice to meet old friends again, especially when it happens unexpectedly. When you enter the wonderful but only half-finished cathedral of Beauvais, you are greeted by the famous image of St. Peter from St. Peter's Basilica. This fits with the building's claim: the highest Gothic vault, the highest church tower, the largest church in France. However, it is a Gothic Babel: the vault and tower collapsed, and that was the end of money and Gothic architecture. The cathedral is a huge torso, the nave of which is a comparatively tiny Romanesque building that stands lost in front of the huge, centuries-old temporary dividing wall that the nave was supposed to replace.