Boire and Coteaux in Bouzillé

Park in the car park near the tennis court on Route de Saint-Florent-le-Vieil.

(S/E) Cross Rue d’Anjou at the pedestrian crossing and enter Square de Gibot, where the funeral chapel of the family of the same name is located. On leaving the square, turn right towards Saint-Florent-le-Vieil, then turn right onto Chemin du Rabotteau, which takes you through the vineyards and eventually joins the D201, Route de la Chapelle-Saint-Florent.

(1) Turn right onto this road and follow it to the Proutais wayside cross. Then go through the small gate on the left into the wooded grounds of the Château de la Bourgonnière. Walk the entire length of the grounds, passing close to the château and the pond, and continue to the main entrance on the D751.

(2) Cross this road carefully and take a quick first turn right then left to join the path leading to the hamlet of La Pohuère.

(3) Carry on almost straight ahead along the road towards L’Aubardière and turn onto the sunken track leading to the Guichetière stopover lodge.

(4) Leave this on your right, follow the road for about 400 metres, then turn right onto a stony track. Keep to the right at the next Fork in the road to come out onto the track leading to the hamlet of La Championnière.

(5) Turn right, pass through the hamlet, then cross the Motte bridge to reach a four-way junction.

(6) Turn left onto the Chemin des Sables, which joins the Route de la Rabotière. Follow it to the left for 200 metres and, at the entrance to the Fossé Neuf, turn right towards La Boire Sainte-Catherine.

(7) Walk around this ‘boire’ (a waterhole fed by the Loire during floods). You’ll walk for about 2 km before reaching a Fork in the road. Take the path furthest to the right to rejoin the Rue des Fours à Chaux.

(8) Turn right onto Rue des Fours à Chaux. Cross Le Fourneau and continue straight on along Rue des Fours à Chaux for about 700 m. Turn right onto a dirt track to cut across the fields.

(9) Turn left onto Route de la Vasinière.

(10) At the junction with the Route de la Ménantière, carry on straight ahead onto a new dirt track. Continue to the Route de la Fontaine. Turn left, then right after 50 m towards Le Quarteron.

(11) Cross the hamlet and continue along the dirt track, between fields and woodland, until you reach the D751.

(12) Cross the road carefully and carry on straight ahead, skirting the vineyards for about 500 metres.

(13) Halfway up the hillside, turn left onto the path that joins the Chemin de la Crosse. At the end of this, turn left onto Rue des Mutreaux and continue for 50 m.

(14) Turn left onto Rue des Clérambaults and carry on until you reach Rue du Pressoir Neuf, which first turns left then right. Carry on straight ahead until you reach Rue d’Anjou (D751).

(15) Turn right and continue for 300 m until you reach the Maudinerie, where you should turn left. Follow the Maudinerie and continue along Chemin des Rousselières. Then turn right onto Rue Bellevue, which quickly turns left and then right as it crosses the housing estate, leading to the car park at the Bouzillé tennis courts (S/E).

29 per cent tar.

Anecdote about the village of Bouzillé
The name Bouzillé initially elicits an expression of amused surprise. The village was first mentioned around 1100 under the name Buzilliacus.
Later, Rabelais took pleasure in imagining a gargantuan origin for this name. The well-known giant, Gargantua, was tasked with settling a dispute between the inhabitants of Liré and Saint-Florent-le-Vieil, who each believed they were halfway between Angers and Nantes. He placed one foot on Saint-Pierre in Nantes and the other on Saint-Maurice in Angers and relieved himself; whereupon ‘everyone cried out: “There’s dung there!”’.
On a more serious note, and going back to much earlier times – as confirmed by Célestin Port’s dictionary of Maine-et-Loire – the commune appears to have been inhabited by prehistoric people. Eight polished stone axes were found within the commune’s boundaries. Furthermore, the Gallo-Roman road from Liré to Le Marillais passed through Buzilliacus.

Square de Gibot
The funeral chapel was built in 1846 on the orders of Count Luc-Jean de Gibot, Lord of La Mauvoisinière, to serve as a burial place for his wife, the Countess de Gibot. This octagonal chapel, with a glass-roofed dome surmounted by the count’s crown, contains 24 niches built into the thickness of its walls. These were intended to house the coffins of family members and servants of the Château de la Mauvoisinière.

Chapel and Château de la Bourgonnière
The château was rebuilt in the 19th century following the turmoil of the Revolution. All that remains of the original château is a 15th-century tower and the 16th-century chapel. Inside the chapel, visitors can admire the ‘Christ habillé de la Bourgonnière’: one of only a few of its kind in Europe. This château is privately owned, and the owners offer guided tours by appointment only (please telephone 06 84 46 57 99).

The lime-burning industry in Bouzillé
The first lime kiln, on the outskirts of the hamlet of Fossé-Neuf, is well preserved and visible from the road. Built in 1804 by Sieur Meslin, this kiln employed up to 50 people and ceased operations in 1939. It is particularly well-built and surprisingly durable: Mr Chené, a former employee, only ever saw it shut down once in 20 years, whilst the kiln chamber was being repaired. Around 1850, the Gontard brothers were granted permission to build two kilns near the Sainte-Catherine quarry, not far from the first one. These ceased operation during the War of 1870. Both kilns are still visible through the dense vegetation. The ancillary buildings, including an impressive number of horse stalls (30), are the last remaining evidence of the intense activity at these kilns.
Source: *La Chaux en Anjou, Une industrie oubliée* by G. Lemaire and P. Girault.