Château de Pouancé, Ombrée d'Anjou, France

The medieval castle of Pouancé is located in Pouancé, at the western border of the old province of Anjou, where it was built as a defence against Brittany. Along with the remains of the city walls, it covers a surface of three hectares. It is nicknamed the 'second castle of Anjou' because of its size, which is just less than that of the castle of Angers. It belongs to the Breton march, facing the Breton castle of Châteaubriant.

Situated in a location which was fortified in the 11th century, the castle was built between the 12th and 15th centuries. Besieged several times during the Hundred Years' War, it became a strategic fortress at the end of the 15th century, during the Mad War. Ruined during the 16th century and completely abandoned since the 18th, it was saved from destruction when Louis Bessière, an inhabitant of Pouancé, decided to restore the building in the 1960s. The castle is now owned by the town of Pouancé and is open to visitors during the summer months.

The castle has been listed as a monument historique since 7 July 1926. Despite volunteers and amateur excavations over 40 years, little is known about the structure of the castle, due to a lack of deep archaeological surveys.

References:

Wikipedia

Church of St Donatus

The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.

The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.

The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.

Mark Griffin (2 years ago)
Great place to visit

Ken Wills (2 years ago)
Nice place to walk and look at

Keith Brown (2 years ago)
Beautiful flowers around the town and a church with an organ, which is rare.

Phil Wilkinson (2 years ago)
Nice to see on a Sunny afternoon.

ioan pexan (7 years ago)
Beautiful place!!!

Château de Pouancé

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Church of St Donatus