Restaurer le Château de Penne : le rêve d’une vie | Trésors du Patrimoine

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“L’idée n’est pas d’en faire le château de la Belle au bois dormant. C’est plutôt de faire une belle ruine qui accompagne un futur savoir et une éducation des jeunes.” Découvrez l’histoire d’Axel qui, depuis son enfance, a consacré sa vie à son rêve : racheter et restaurer le château de Penne.

“Le rêve dune vie”
Un documentaire de la collection Des Racines et des Ailes, écrit et réalisé par Myriam Elhadad.
© ECLECTIC PRODUCTION
Tout droits réservés – AMP
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Aveyron, 300 km of a steep valley…
Along its impressive limestone cliffs, preserved forests
and architectural gems. The village of Bruniquel and its
cliff-side castle – its oldest parts date from the 6th century. Further north, the fortress of Najac, built
in 1253 by Alphonse de Poitiers. Its dungeon rises to a height of 40 meters.
Nearby, built at 120 meters, at the top of a rocky peak, here is
finally the fortress of Penne, a masterpiece of medieval military architecture.
Part of it dates from the 12th century, but most of it was built two hundred years later.
Penne Castle, a defensive building reputed to be impregnable, today represents a
major challenge for restorers; Climbing the rocky peak while carrying
construction materials is difficult… so this morning, the owner of the place decided
to use drastic measures. The helicopter will make 130 rotations,
carrying hundreds of cut stones from the valley – stones that will soon make it possible
to rebuild the most ruined and unstable parts of the castle.
This is Axel Letellier, 34 years old, an architect from Toulouse, passionate about heritage,
fortified castles, and more particularly the Penne fortress … today’s operation is him.
It’s impressive though, isn’t it? It’s even magnificent, isn’t it? That’s the point,
it’s the advantage of modernity and mechanics compared to the renovation of
old buildings, and it’s true that even as a heritage architect, it’s the
… well, it’s on my site, but it’s the first time I’ve managed to do this type of
delivery, so it’s like a little fantasy, I was going to say, of a little heritage architect.
Couldn’t you have done it differently? We could have done it differently, we tried to
do it differently because a year and a half ago, we designed an access road with a
mechanical shovel and we made deliveries by quad, that is to say, a 4-wheeled vehicle, and it is
much longer and much more complicated. Axel Letellier bought the Château
de Penne 4 years ago; Since then, he has continued to consolidate its remains.
His financial investment: more than 100,000 euros. A lot of money and above all
a lot of energy, with the aim of making these ruins visitable, so
that everyone can appreciate and understand the military architecture of this region…
We’re going back to my house, a little madness, which my wife and I decided to take over
5 years ago, and which we managed to buy back in 2006 and which we are trying to save as best we
can in order to… well, in order to consolidate it, to preserve it because for 450 years it had been leaking
water since it was dismantled during the wars of religion and really, it was really
dismantled, that is to say they removed the roofs, the floors and all the
windows which means that it was really leaking water and since then it has been used as a stone quarry
of course, as always, until…, until 1902 when it was classified as a historical monument
which made it possible to…, to stop this massacre. For Axel, this large-scale project
is an architect’s dream come true – an architect who has admired the
fortifications of the time of the knights since childhood. In the center, in the upper part, there is a hole, which
allows you to throw stone or other projectiles. We
completely restored it because, in fact, we had a big problem with the overall stability
of this part since half of the beam had collapsed and so we
had to rebuild the entire left base. In the 13th century, we defend ourselves against several
problems, I mean it was rather a calm period in the 13th century since
it was the period when the king of France finally took Occitania and attached it to the kingdom
and very quickly there were going to be different problems, notably the war with the
English and the border between England and France was going to move very
regularly and at a given moment in the war, this border was Aveyron, so it was the
foot of the castle, opposite was England. Penne Castle has been the site of
fierce battles – during the Hundred Years’ War, the Cathar uprising and the Albigensian Crusade
. Its remains are thus marked by past centuries but also by these
terrible battles; Axel should not make them disappear during his restoration,
but on the contrary highlight them. So, in terms of the construction, we
created a blend between the old parts and the new parts, and in order to truly respect
the archaeology of the building in the future, we inserted strips of schist each time which
really allow us to know the old masonry parts and the more recent parts.
And that’s the goal for the whole castle, to recreate it exactly?
It’s not about doing it all over again, it’s about finding a happy medium between what we
have to preserve and what we have to melt away, being discreet and making adjustments that will surely be contemporary
to make accessible parts that today are totally ruined and that have
no reading and that we cannot reinterpret. Axel and the castle of Penne, it’s an old
story; a story that goes back to childhood, when the future architect became
fond of this unusual place, this ruined building, and became passionate about
the epic tale of the knights of the Middle Ages… As evidenced by an amateur film shot when
he was 13. He was with his parents on the castle grounds that day
. The words he spoke now seem premonitory:
he was already talking to his father about buying the castle. Anyway, I’m in such a bad mood…
And I’m in such a good mood, I’m going to buy his castle back from the Duke of…
20 years later, the dream has come true. I think a castle is calling you; I was
lucky enough to have fallen into it when I was little, I have had this passion
for old buildings and old castles for a long time, that’s what brought me to architecture;
I have…, the castle of Penne, I am 33 years old, I made my first proposal, first
approach to try to buy it at 14 years old. By offering candy?
By offering candy, no, a building of this type has no value, it only has the
value you want to put into it. Axel made his dream come true for his thirtieth
birthday. With Sophie, his wife, he also bought a house overlooking the castle,
in the old medieval village of Penne. We arrive at my house and luckily we are in
the last house in the village and we have a breathtaking view of the castle. During
the week, he lives in Toulouse, but he spends almost all his
weekends in the village. He brings his family there, and this Sunday, his in-laws.
And do we have a choice or not, Sophie? We don’t have a choice or we have a choice…?
When we love, we don’t count… Yes, that’s it, for love… (laughter), that’s
it, for love, what wouldn’t we do in fact? That’s it… No, after that it’s
interesting, it’s true that sometimes… well we don’t have the same rhythm; and when we do
n’t have the same rhythm… I tone it down a bit… Father-in-law: No, but it’s…
it’s a gripping place all the same… Yes, the place is beautiful…
I didn’t know the area at all, but it’s very…, it’s very…, It’s very endearing…
But it’s true that, well, I wouldn’t have come here on my own… (laughs) I have to be clear, that on my own
it wouldn’t have occurred to me; I would have said to myself: he’s beautiful, but I would
n’t have said to myself: I’m going to save him, so there you go. The whole house expresses
Axel’s passion for the castle… So there you have it, this room that has become our
living room, where there were tiny openings and we broke everything down to make big
openings so that when we’re sitting, we can see the castle, from up there we
can admire it, check everything is okay… There the stakes, the little stakes that are
above, we fought to get them planted because he didn’t want to, because it
would break the view until…, until the end, but there are small
safety standards, let’s say, with our monsters, so there you have it… So we planted vines and soon it wo
n’t be seen at all… And it’s true that, well, after the view from up there is majestic because
we… we go along the very top and we redid all the little gardens above; We had to
do them very quickly because there was a lot of pressure to do them, as if we didn’t have
enough down there, so we did everything up there again. The village, Aveyron and
the castle…. A trilogy. Back to the castle, where the stones weakened
by the years, by the cold and by the sun are extracted from the walls and replaced.
The workers use the cut blocks, delivered a few days earlier by helicopter.
The fortifications are thus consolidated, and will once again be able to survive the centuries.
That’s very dangerous, it’ll fall off in 2/3 years , you know, they’ll go away on their own
, you see, you see we remove it by hand; They are broken to the bottom, the water
has penetrated and with the frost the water penetrates and it breaks the stone, it shatters the stone.
We number all the stones to be changed, all those which are the most frozen,
those which have frozen, which have burst in the frost, which are most at risk, we change them and those
which are deep down, very damaged, more than 5 cm, we also change them, 5/10, which risk
making the other stones which are at risk fall; and the places that have a big hole that is
very damaged are reconstructed, the stones are changed. The idea is to crystallize the
existing ends, consolidate them and restore them so that; Well, the work carried out should
last for 100, 200, 300 years since this… well, with the work we’re doing,
once we’ve restored this part, unless it’s dismantled by
other people later, there ‘s no reason for it to move.
But in fact we will never see the whole castle again?
we… I think we’ll never see the whole castle again, that’s not the idea,
anyway it would be a pure fantasy since it’s still missing, at the level of the… the entrance gatehouse
for example, it’s still missing about fifteen meters of elevation, we don’t know at all how
it was reconstructed so it’s not feasible. Among the workers who work on the castle,
there is one who plays a special role. This is Frédéric, a stonemason…
Frédéric does not belong to any company; he is the first employee of Axel to devote himself
entirely to the restoration of the fortress. When I started stone cutting,
it was my father who reminded me of this not long ago, he said to me: but it’s true that
when you started, you told me that you wanted to restore a castle all by yourself, and
yes indeed, it’s true that I said that in the early days, well it’s a goal,
a goal accomplished, so there you go, I restore, I work from…, I live from my passion so
obviously it’s a dream; It’s not allowed for everyone, I’m young, I have the opportunity
to do a job that I love and to make a living from it, so… Your dream is to create 150 jobs in Penne?
No, it’s not about creating 150 jobs in Penne; My project is a global project, it is… I think
that in fact the economic life of the village is as important as the restoration of the castle
; Restoring the castle for the sake of restoring the castle has no interest, apart from
personal interest, pleasure, that’s all, and I did n’t design this project to be selfish, I
think everyone should benefit from it. Frédéric is staying in the heart of the village –
again, with Axel, who wants to help combat rural depopulation. Penne
has only 60 inhabitants year-round; and rejuvenating its population is a matter of survival.
And where are we going then? And we go to…
We go to my place, to Frédéric’s, and who lives in this
house that we took over, because well, the idea… the idea was to… to repopulate
the village a little because there were a lot of old people, and
it works because suddenly there is this street which is a little
more lively because there are 2 inhabitants on it. Hello…
Hello Stenny… How are you?
Good and you ? This is the question you should ask yourself.
Well, it’s going well, everything’s fine, yeah yeah yeah… Stenny, Frédéric’s partner, will be a mother very soon
… (Axel: Is it soon? Stenny: Well, Monday… Frédéric: If all goes well…) which
obviously delights Axel… his little idea for the village of Penne is gaining ground.
Is this your way of repopulating Penne? It’s not voluntary…
It’s mine… (laughs) No, it’s true, it’s not voluntary.
The initial idea was to bring in a stonemason, and if possible a young one, because
there was still the potential for it to recreate a family, and that’s what
happened because they reached 2 and they will soon be 3 and… and so yeah, it’s
an interesting theme because he satisfies the work he has to do and then I think
that the town and the school are also happy. Rebuilding the ruins of the castle, bringing
activity back to the village and fighting against the aging of its population: so
many ways, for Axel, to contribute to the revival of the Aveyron gorges.
A place where he spent a large part of his childhood, and which he knows by heart. The
heritage riches of the hilltop villages in the region, such as Bruniquel and Najac,
contributed to his desire to embark on the adventure of the Château de Penne.
He also found this inspiration in the village of Saint-Antonin,
one of the oldest medieval towns in the Aveyron valley.
It houses, among other things, the oldest town hall in France, whose
belfry was built in the 12th century. Its alleys and
Gothic facades are mostly listed in the national heritage registers.
Saint Antonin is also the village where Axel’s father, himself a heritage architect, lived.
Axel therefore knows all his hidden treasures. Is this house in a strange state?
Oh yeah, that’s pretty impressive. It’s what ?
I haven’t been back for 6 or 7 years, it’s a house that belonged to me and
my father or rather to my father and me and we had the project of rehabilitating it since
it’s a house a bit like a castle, that is to say it’s a patio with
various and varied interesting architectural elements and we wanted to show it off a bit
especially since it’s on the village square and that’s precisely a gap in
the interior of Saint-Antonin and it has 4 shops on the ground floor and if it lived it would allow
that part to function better. And then nothing happens anymore?
And there is nothing more happening, because for the moment the projects of the new owners
are completely stopped, whereas I am going to show you there are frescoes from the beginning of the
13th century and it is quite impressive. 13th century frescoes still
perfectly legible; They were hidden for centuries under plaster…
There on the wall we have an old civil fresco which was discovered in the 80s, we can
clearly see that there is really a very important decoration with at the top, there were
archaeologists who studied the thing, eh so where we have… there was the Count of Toulouse
on horseback with his different coats of arms. And is it a rare fresco?
Well, finding a fresco from the beginning of the 13th century in a house that was always
inhabited until about ten years ago is quite exceptional because we tend to
peel back the crust and that’s what’s in this room because we have the old 13th century floor
in very poor condition, we found different layers from the 15th, the 16th and we were lucky
that this fresco is still there which is… well 1250 to today, well that’s almost 800
years old. So we find a little further on, here we have frescoes from the 17th or
18th century with a decoration around an alcove… And is this representative of
Saint-Antonin in general? And it is representative of Saint-Antonin
in general because we are lucky to have a lot of houses which have preserved
architectural elements from different periods starting from the 13th century to the 19th
century and all these houses are often in a good state of original conservation
even if there is a lot of work to be done. The potential is considerable – in
the case of Saint Antonin, but beyond that, thinks Axel, for the whole Aveyron valley.
His castle is a building block. It will contribute to the revival of the heritage
of this region – a landlocked region, whose very rugged terrain has
condemned it to great isolation until now. The castle has no interest as such
and in an independent and autonomous way, if it is to restore a castle to live there
alone and lock oneself behind a door, as much as to buy a manor with a roof, rooms and
live inside, uh … it is … no that’s it, it is a global project, on a scale … on a scale
I was going to say almost regional since there are 3 departments so it can end up creating a
country of art and history which will allow to have an influence which can be national.
To achieve this goal, we will now have to create the event.
While waiting for the castle to be restored and open its doors to the public, the village is
organizing a medieval festival. And Axel’s whole family gets involved.
So what’s that, what did you just put there?
It’s called a tabar if I’m not mistaken, that’s it and which is… and which is
… which is made in the colors… in the colors of the local area and so Penne is on a
blue background with a feather and so we found that the blue and white tabar corresponded quite well
to the image; so a bit like, let’s say, a knight who defends for the local lord.
It’s a kid’s dream all the way through. It’s the castle, the disguise, that’s it
, it’s a childhood dream all the way through… because I did limit the
outfit because he wanted the chainmail, the thing, the thing, I said no, we
‘ll wait a bit, not all at once. Axel and Sophie restored the village festival to its medieval character
. For years, it had lost this historical identity…
I don’t have the… I don’t have the vocabulary that goes with it, we have to work on that for next year
… Come on… the minstrels, the ladies… Today everyone here is mobilized.
Hello, a little kiss? Oh how handsome he is, my darling, oh
how handsome she is, oh how handsome she is! Gentle young man, beautiful lady…
He’s still as handsome even in the Middle Ages? Oh and you’re pretty too! Very beautiful…
We’ll join you, we’ll get dressed… See you later, they’ll
dress up, they’ll dress up… Axel has reintroduced period costumes and
medieval entertainment in the village square. And for the past three years, the festival has been attracting an ever-
increasing number of people. While Frederick introduces visitors to stone cutting,
children’s games are organized along the ramparts. Is the castle alive again?
It’s starting, isn’t it? There seems to be a bit of a
crowd, a bit of life? Oh yes, that’s a premise…
Yes, the castle comes back to life, people get close to it, they can feel the rock,
the stone, they can see a bit how difficult it is to build a castle on the
side of a castle like that since they go along it, so yeah, it’s an
interesting connection between a pleasure and a leisure activity and the construction of the castle 800 years ago.
Axel’s initiative is not isolated… several enthusiasts are thus highlighting the
heritage of the Aveyron gorges, and in this way contributing to the development of
the villages of this region – we will soon discover another of these exemplary stories….
But first, we’re heading to the other side of France – towards Champagne. Here
we are in the heart of the Forêt d’Orient natural park – an area of ​​70,000
hectares… and three immense artificial lakes, which regulate the flow of the Seine.
Champagne, a region very rich in cereals… it once had 450
flour mills. Almost all of it has almost disappeared. In the center of the natural park, here is the village of
Dosches, and its new mill… A replica of a typical model of the region, entirely in wood
– as they were built in the 18th century. Completed three years ago, it is the work of an
association dedicated to the revival of the Champagne mills… Its founder is of
Dutch origin, his name is Erwin Schriever. Where do these paintings come from, Erwin?
This is Dutch cotton, it’s a small manufacturer, a miller who is passionate
about it and who still makes it by hand, so it’s a mixture of polyester and
cotton, dyed in the mass like in the old days. And these canvases are deployed one by one on
the frame of the wings, by Erwin, and by Jean-Paul, a volunteer of the association. A real spectacle
for tourists passing through the region. It’s beautiful ! What do you think about it?
This is the first time I have seen a windmill in France.
You have to climb to the end of each wing –
the two men are thus about ten meters high.
We deploy 8 times 8 m2, i.e. 60 m2, to capture enough wind to
simply produce the energy. Erwin is a carpenter – and for a man of art
like him, designing and building a mill is the ultimate achievement…
Ah, it’s still a beautiful view from here, eh, with the church there, the sun
shining nicely, it’s truly magical. It is also a source of pride as a
carpenter, I would say, to be able to safeguard know-how in order to pass it on
to younger people, to inspire others with it, so as to see a passion born in
younger people and to want to do the same thing or better, you always have to do better; It’s this
pleasure, it’s not more complicated than that, eh, it’s the… it’s life which is
beautiful through something. This is the mill that served as a model for Erwin
and his team… By studying this photo, he managed to draw up the plans…
Then, it took two years, in the workshop, for young people in integration programs to complete its construction.
Until that day in September 2006, when it arrived in spare parts at the Dosches site.
In just 48 hours, the wooden giant was up and running – a real achievement for all
the volunteers who wanted to revive a heritage that was thought to have disappeared forever.
(Arrival of the volunteers) As soon as the wind blows, these same
volunteers meet in Dosches, to turn the sails.
In order to position them in the direction of the wind, they first
pivot the cage on its central axis… Then, they start the movement of the
wings… the wind must exceed 20 km/ h for the mill to start turning
… this afternoon, we are just at the limit. For now, the mill is just running
for the enjoyment of volunteers and visitors – it is not yet producing
flour. But it’s coming very soon. I think the first time I saw
wings turning, it was a strong emotion, very, very strong. In addition, as it is a
mill that was made by Erwin in terms of plans and that until it had been assembled
we did not know what it would give, so the first time it turned it was still
really, really emotional. The Dosches mill is the result of a meeting
between Holland and France: Erwin grew up near Amsterdam. At the age of 20 he left his
native country to become a journeyman, specializing in carpentry. It was then that he met
in Troyes the woman who would become his wife, and already passionate about mills, he settled permanently in
Champagne… His daughter Flore is now 20 years old. A man from the land of mills puts down roots in
a region where the mills have all disappeared… he had to do something.
To see it all together with our team of faithful and courageous people is a little
sharing of happiness, eh, so it’s good, great; Long live flour! In
a few weeks or months. The mill is the heart of the project. But on
the site, there is now an old 15th century barn to welcome the public, a
medieval garden, and soon, an old-fashioned bread oven, being built right now
by young people training to be masons. A little tidying up, is that it?
Yes, a bit of tidying up and preparing materials…
Céline, 22, is a student at the Troyes Heritage School.
She is doing her end-of-year internship here. The bread oven is built in the old style;
concrete is prohibited here. Using local materials and
recycled tiles, heritage specialist trainees enjoy learning
traditional construction techniques. So that will be for
later and then there you go… Why the Céline heritage?
It’s the idea already of… how… in fact, to be part of the builders, you know, there
‘s something a bit vibrant, something important, we leave, well, it’s the
case to say it, our stone in the building, we are… we are a little ant in all that, and then it’s
true that it’s pleasant when people come and then look at the work, they say
what you’re doing is great, it’s… it’s sure that it’s more, it’s more empirical, I
mean, it’s not traditional masonry, in breeze blocks, it doesn’t leave the same imprint, you
know…, so… and then it’s exciting to work with materials that are not
perfect, always composing with the material, it’s great, there’s something
a little bit artistic about it, so it’s really pleasant.
Once the oven is finished, it will be used to bake the flour from the mill –
Dosches will soon have its daily organic bread. The next morning, a few kilometers
from the mill… We meet Erwin, who is today building the framework of a
traditional Champagne house… To find yourself there, in front of a child’s game
somewhere, a puzzle game, a game of pick-up sticks and sets in a
good context to raise that, it’s a real joy. It can’t be explained, it has to be experienced…
Here, Erwin is no longer the head of an association, but a business leader, a specialist in
Champagne houses and traditional construction techniques.
The mortise and tenon joint was developed a little, invented a little in the 13th century, let’s say, before
the 13th century, before that we often assembled pieces of wood side by side, tied or
side by side with a joint, but the real mortise and tenon joint with its dowel which blocks the, which
blocks the assembly is from the 13th, 14th century, we have been working in this way for 800 years.
And for 8 centuries the Champagne landscape has been inseparable from these
timber-framed buildings… Apart from the cathedrals and a few mansions, everything here was
built in this way – including the country churches, which are still,
exceptionally, very numerous in the region. Are you starting the crane?
The lifting operation continues, with the installation of the enormous beams that will support
the first floor of the house – for Marzhin, a young companion, this is a first. You
have to be careful that your fingers are not underneath, the bedstead will fit
into the mortise and tenon, then you have to be careful of the verticality of the post so that it doesn’t
fall on your head and that’s it… A Champagne house like
this has around 350 pieces of wood, and can be assembled in three days.
And today, seeing a house reborn, how does that feel to you?
That’s funny… Does that make you happy?
Ah well yes eh, especially, especially, it’s not… it’s not concrete blocks eh, it’s wood
and it’s not… it’s not white wood eh… So it’s… it’s still to tell you
that the young people who made it, they know how to build the traditional…
Yeah yeah because it’s rare to see a construction like that eh….
Yes yes it’s true… The concrete blocks, the concrete blocks… it’s the barracks
whereas here it’s alive, the wood is alive eh, and then it’s beautiful, it’s it’s it’s…
so of course there’s maintenance but when you ‘re retired, if you want you have the time…
It’s true… Erwin the carpenter is an activist for the
Champagne heritage… timber-framed construction is for him a heritage, which he
wants to bring up to date. And around him, there are many who have the same approach.
This morning, he came to give a hand to Cédric, one of his employees, who is building
his own eco-friendly house with his father. Hello, how are you?
Warm, how’s it going… Is it tapping?
And yes… Are you packing?
We continue yes… Is that true? This afternoon
a few wheelbarrows then? Yes, today yes, it is…
For the insulation of the walls, Cédric chose hemp, a natural
and recyclable material… hemp, which was once used to make ropes and textiles.
When we make extruded polystyrene, for example, we go and get the oil from the eastern countries,
we bring it to Europe, it will perhaps be manufactured in Marseille by extrusion
and then afterwards, it is transformed in the north to come back here, there, there we take the
product 20 km away in the rounds and that employs the local people; the farmers have
a product to produce again, somewhere …
There is little loss, we recover everything down to the last
crumbs, which is also ecological, no waste, no… everything is usable…
Cédric wants a passive house, which requires as little heating as possible,
thanks to this ultra- efficient insulation. A return to the roots.
There we were 100% eco-friendly somewhere, we filled the walls with clay, today,
it could be hemp because it is an agricultural product which… which is reintroduced into
the building with natural lime; there they covered with straw, not for nothing, for a
roof thickness of 30.40 cm, today we do it with more industrialized panels but
with wood fibers or compacted hemp so somewhere we see a return of the materials
breasts in the building which, well that we have left a little for 100 years but and they are back.
And it is thus, through innovative processes, that the traditional architecture of
Champagne is being brought up to date. An architecture that defines the identity of
the region and particularly that of the city of Troyes. A medieval town whose
historic center has been largely renovated over the last 15 years… with
the help of Erwin and his companions, among others. Here, 80% of the buildings date from the 16th
century – more than Rouen or Strasbourg, it is the highest concentration
of half-timbered houses in Europe. Erwin has restored about twenty of these houses
and in doing so he has learned a lot about their history and architecture. They were
born out of a catastrophe and built simultaneously – this explains their homogeneous style.
After the devastating fire of 1520-1524, the city was ¾ destroyed in this area
at least and everything was rebuilt very quickly by a huge team of carpenters
and master builders, in the late Gothic style ; There was economic wealth in
the city of Troyes, the economy was flourishing, and that is what made it possible to rebuild these,
these, these beautiful houses quickly. So we can be happy because it’s 4/500 years
of history, all wooden construction, which shows that wood is… it’s not eternal
but it can last; It’s not just stone. So, are these houses colorful?
Yes, they are colored because we know, uh… we know from analysis of the
traces on the wood or on the plaster, that the expression was symbolic; The color
was a symbol of economic power, when you put yellow or red, it showed that…
there was a certain power behind that. And inside, what are the
special features of these Trojan houses? Meet Véronique and Alain Rodien,
who have owned one of these gems for 22 years. The facade was restored by Erwin. As for
the interiors, the owners, Véronique and her husband,
renovated them themselves in their free time. Alain is passionate about
medieval heritage and is a member of the Association for the Preservation of Old Troyes.
We are probably in the main room of the Pont Ferre house and therefore a
room which is around fifty m2, with the presence of the original
beams, which have worn over time; There, we feel a lot of emotion in these beams which
perhaps date back before 500 years, and they are beams which… which live if you like
because even with 500 years of age, they still play a little with the humidity in the seasons, and
so from time to time they crack, from time to time they live, they increase in volume,
they decrease, that is the law of nature. Wood brings an undeniable warmth
to the houses and in this one we feel particularly good, especially since we are in the
south, in the city center, so we are in absolute calm on a small square at the head of the cathedral, we
cannot ask for much more. The dwellings were once
small. Alain has gathered several of them, organized today around
this interior courtyard… So, here we are in the patio, it is the
central space which today is made up of a passageway with a turret, which has been preserved
despite the ravages of time and this turret houses a… a staircase which has been preserved
since the 16th century; The advantage is that the way it is organized gives us
a certain conviviality, if you like, we can talk to each other from one room to another, we are
never really very far from each other and that is really interesting.
On the ground floor, Alain is in the process of reconstructing
a 16th century room with its large fireplace and workshop, typical of the Middle Ages.
The workshop is this set which allowed the craftsman to work in front of his customers
with here, the possibility of opening when he wanted and when he had customers
… This famous workshop which is made up of a panel which opens onto the street…
So at the time we sold like that there? We sold like that, in front of
the customer, outside. In the Middle Ages, Troyes hosted
a fair of European renown, and it was then that its famous cathedral was built
at the beginning of the 13th century. Erwin will now introduce us to
the legacy of this period of prosperity. A masterpiece, which for him, a master
carpenter, has a very special value. At his side today is
Alexandre, who works for the wine merchant who owns this place.
Here is this famous framework, said to be the oldest framework in France, non-religious
yeah yeah. Ah, it’s magnificent, isn’t it? End of the 12th century, it’s one of the
oldest in France – its construction is contemporary with that of the neighboring cathedral.
What’s great about this framework is that you feel like you’re in a boat hull a bit, because
it was… it was like a naval framework, upside down, placed on the chalk walls and held
by… by tie rods that you can’t see because there was a joist on top, to maintain
the spacing of this building. So it’s quite a … quite a rhythm of… in the end we call
it a frame made of trusses-forming rafters, so the edges are sharp, it shows that… that
it’s heartwood and that’s nice because it shows that there have been no leaks over
time, it’s a well-maintained building even if there’s lots of dust, that doesn’t mean anything, and it’s a
super healthy wood so it still promises… even if the building is restored one day, it’s a wood that will
go on for another 600 years of history. It is assumed that there were parties
held here, on the first floor, in the Middle Ages, perhaps even Joan of Arc came in 1429, and in
fact it was the reception parties, the storage and then the wine merchants who took
possession of the place from the French Revolution since it went badly for the
canons who lived on the site of the store. Okay… There
was already a lot of technology at that time, in that field, with
so little wood, with such a useful volume because it’s like an igloo, you know, it’s very, very large
in terms of habitable volume, we still have an intact building 800 years later, it’s great…
Erwin arrived in Troyes in 1984, and that’s when he discovered these treasures from the Middle Ages.
He was a young Companion of Duty, specializing in carpentry, and the example of these craftsmen from a
distant past inspired and motivated him. Today he sees himself as the
heir to this knowledge. The profession has… has always been proud of
these works, we can clearly see the men and women proud in their
positions with their tools, so that’s a pleasure; They are a bit like brothers
and sisters that… that we would have liked to know, or that we would like to know…
And what would you tell them or what would you like to hear?
Oh I would transmit the same… the same passion I think even if the language has changed in 200 years,
they spoke a dialect, we will have the same language to transmit
to young people by saying continue because we like it and then, it is worth
working with your hands and your head. For 25 years, Erwin has continued
to follow in the footsteps of his distant predecessors. And he is preparing
to do the same here at the Dosches mill… Because his project is not only about
rebuilding a lost building, but also about reviving a
forgotten trade. The miller’s trade, to which Jean-Paul, a former carpenter, will soon be introduced.
This is one of the four panels you started drawing?
There you go, but before tracing everything, I did some… some tests…
In the meantime, he built himself the device that would allow
the wheat to be poured into the stacks. We’re going to put the four sides
to receive the grain… Yeah yeah…Okay…
So that it can flow into the… into the millstones. These are the two cement discs between
which the wheat grains will be ground. So how’s it going?
It’s going well, there are… there are some points, there are still some adjustments to be made but it’s… It’s looking good.
What tempted you, Jean-Paul, to embark on this adventure?
Well, it’s already an extraordinary challenge, because I don’t like the series, I like what
is out of the ordinary in some way, and it’s also a personal challenge, and bringing the past back to life in the
present; things… I learn a lot of things here, because me, being a mill carpenter,
uh, I didn’t know so, Mr. Schriever explained a lot of things to me and following that, then
following the companies that I did I learned others and then we put our things together.
The system is almost complete – now we just need to learn how to operate it,
to produce good quality, old-fashioned flour . See you in a few weeks
: we will accompany Jean-Paul to the Netherlands, where he will be trained by a qualified miller…
But first, let’s head back to the Aveyron valley, more precisely
to the village of Bournazel, near Rodez… 200 km north of the medieval fortress
of Penne, where we were just now, there is another castle… its owner
is also passionate about heritage. Two medieval towers mark the entrance
to a Renaissance masterpiece. Bournazel Castle, built in 1545, owes its
fame to its facade, the motifs of which evoke Greco-Roman mythology. Each of them praises
the qualities of the family who built the castle, the lord of Buisson and his wife.
Today, the mistress of the house is called Martine Harlin; She and her husband
bought the castle three years ago. So here, this is the oldest facade
, we have diverse and varied representations, very rich. Here, the bucrania which
are… emaciated bull skulls so it’s a very very old antique motif; I
really like the languid bull here… everyone knows about the abduction of Europa by
Jupiter, where he lies down in front of his nymph and tries to… he’s about to abduct her so
he smiles a little with seductive eyes, every time I see him,
this… this bull makes me laugh a lot. And even for the record, we have some… in the corner over there
we have hidden some things that are a little … a little bit daring, we’ll go and see…
We have a satyr here, in the left corner you see, in a priapic position, but we
hide it, we put it in the corner, it’s a bit like in the Middle Ages when we put things that were a
little bit daring we put them right at the top, so that they are there to be seen
but not too much, so that it doesn’t shock. Martine Harlin discovered the castle eight
years ago; it then housed a rest home. She and her husband had already restored
another castle in the area, so they had the experience
to take on this one. There were all the garbage cans lined up
next to each other, with no respect for the magnificent facade. I was struck by the
beauty of the place and I left, I said to myself, I don’t want to see this any longer, I’m
leaving. And in fact it was only 3/4 years later that the architect of the buildings of France
came to find me and asked me if I wanted to take care of Bournazel; but it
took a year and a half of thinking, even though it was love at first sight, given the scale of the
project, it was still a big responsibility and then we… we decided
, we jumped in like crazy, and what finally made your decision?
The exceptional side of the place, it’s absolutely sumptuous for me, but it’s difficult
to explain why something is beautiful, for me it’s obvious, it’s
obvious at first… at first moment, it’s like a precious box framed by a
medieval fortress, it’s absolutely astonishing when you discover the place and when you look
in detail, we have a wealth of, of exceptional sculpture, everything is exceptional
here so well, it’s a big decision, it’s a life decision, it means that it’s the
next 20 years, because it’s not 2 years, eh, that’s real life, for me real life is
n’t about staying in a deckchair in the sun, so real life is really about
making a project, doing something, communicating your passion, your enthusiasm, your
way of life, well it’s a way of life, it’s a choice that my husband and I made…
we entered into heritage as we enter into religion in some way eh…
I don’t feel like the owner, I feel like the custodian so I want… I
left to care for… to care for the beast so it… it will take time.
First stage: the reconstruction of a wing destroyed in 1790, following the capture
of the castle by the village peasants. Today, installation of a lintel
on the future facade… Yoann, stonemason, is coordinating the worksite….
His responsibility is considerable, because he is rebuilding part of a
16th century castle. Architects and restorers usually avoid
measuring themselves against this type of building, as they are so complex, refined and demanding.
Martine Harlin is aware of the unusual nature of the project; This is why
she pays attention to the smallest details. Is there a big joint there for now? Eh
? You know I don’t like big joints, right?
Oh no, no, but you don’t need a big joint, no, no, there won’t be any…
Because there… but, we won’t see anything…
You see, we only see here, hop… What’s this little notch there?
Yeah yeah… The little notch there is there
on purpose, to catch the shadow. The slightest angle is studied, to catch a
shadow, to highlight days and blacks , whites and blacks…
Is it a story of light? Yes yes it’s a story of light
Everything is a story of light on this building? Yes yes, in ornamentation it is essential.
And then it’s the same here, it’s clearly marked here, so that the drop detaches. You see there, there is
an instrument which has passed, there, on each side around each drop, why? To make
a shadow around like a little pencil line, it looks like it’s surrounded by a
pencil line. And that’s the… the quality of work and like that, it won’t seem… from a distance it wo
n’t seem soft, it will seem drawn, not soft, not lost in the background eh since
it’s not colored, so the only color that exists is the light and the, and
the… it’s playing on the depths. To get an idea of ​​the scale of
the undertaking, here is an aerial photograph of the castle before operations began.
Two years ago, with this facade that we see here, from the inside…
Martine Harlin insisted, with the chief architect, that the
missing building be replaced identically – and her dream is now being realized.
Where are we in relation to this photo? So here we are on this terrace
and uh, we’re looking towards the castle. Towards the small turret that we can see very
well, that we can clearly see in the photo. And that’s a photomontage and today, we’ve
reached this level, that is to say that this whole part has been reassembled and we’ve
restored a large third of the castle, that’s it… And what we saw this morning was Yoann who
was working on this lintel there, so we were exactly there this morning.
Once the work is completed in this part of the building,
Martine Harlin and her husband will set up their apartments in this part of the building,
while opening the castle to visitors. That’s what was… it’s extraordinary for an
architect, he feels that there are people who are going to live there, that there is going to be a soul
again and that’s important for an architect, to know that it is going to be lived in and that it is going to be
used because often we do projects for… restoration, we restore, Mr.
Architect, restore and then we’ll see what we can do with it afterwards, it’s not necessarily
the best solution for good restoration. Restoring a building identical to one built
in the 16th century is not usual; Most often we prefer to do nothing rather than
revisit the destruction of past centuries. Here, however, it was a question of the solidity of this
façade, which is still orphaned today… Currently it has an air, a little air of a
triumphal arch because we see through it, eh, which is a complete contradiction, so we will have
again the blacks of the… of the windows which are… which always appear black and then
we have the large roof which… which is above. So this facade there, when we arrived it was
… falling, there were stones that had fallen, uh, and the facade was
split, that is to say that the front part came towards the courtyard and the rear part fell
onto the roof that we saw earlier. The work on the castle has been entrusted to
a local company – but it is not the only one working in Bournazel…
This morning, in the pouring rain, students from
the University of Montpellier – architecture and art history departments – are working on a period pavilion.
Martine Harlin wanted to devote part of the project to
training in restoration techniques, under the direction of two professors.
The coatings will be the main subject of this school project, the 5th at the Château de
Bournazel. It may seem austere, but Hervé Nicolas, the first of the two speakers,
has his own way of communicating his knowledge. What we are asking you here, because you are
going to be initiated, is to understand that a coating is sending the mortar on the wall,
it is not sending it on your feet so the whole system will consist of taking… it is a little
like when you want to eat, we teach you to eat first with a teaspoon then after
we put a tablespoon in your mouth; Well, it’s exactly the same thing, you have to
learn to take small quantities at the beginning and then when you
are able to throw these small quantities at the wall without dropping them, well you will take bigger ones
and then I can show you, you can take really big ones, okay…
Hervé Nicolas likes things well done… Before being a teacher, he was a craftsman.
Look at what you’re doing, you’re covering your slap, you shouldn’t do it for the sake of it, take the
time you need, learn to find the gestures. You have to think that every drop
you drop is… it’s your evening soup that you’re reducing.
1st step, learning the gesture… Put yourself in the place of the people
who did that, Madam Architect… I do that… Snap, hop… Are
you trying to communicate to them the precious nature of the material there?
Yes, and at the same time, to show them that it’s not something you
do with white gloves and tweezers, and that it’s
something you commit to. The workshop next door concerns the lintel of the
entrance door, from which the most deteriorated stones must be removed and replaced.
It’s 400 years old and it still exists… Thierry Verdier supervises and participates
in the work… he teaches art history and architecture in Montpellier…
That’s not the image you have of a university professor…
Well, ancient architecture is also a lot of material and if we are
not aware of the material, if we do not stay in the world of ornament, well we
forget that a building is difficult, it is a lot of mass, a lot of weight,
a lot of daily work that no one looks at and so the students learn
that too… after having drawn beautiful plans, after having made the most
magnificent restorations with a lot of details, a lot of intelligence in the drawing, well they
realize that as we make a drawing, well there are others behind who have to carry it out.
They are volunteers, the exams have already been passed so they have nothing to validate, now
it is indeed a plus; There you go, the pleasure of effort…
And of achieving something… There you go, so they won’t sign but in any
case they will leave something lasting. What do you get out of
seeing them here, doing what they do? Well, like that I’m sure that I’ll have
enthusiasts who will follow me, that’s what interests me because the
people who have seen it once, who have touched it, I’m sure that afterwards they are won over, or
afterwards they come back, or afterwards… it’s not innocent; In my opinion, it’s knowledge that remains
ingrained, so it’s really to transmit… what I find beautiful, so if they do
n’t find it beautiful, too bad, but I think that all those who are there are already motivated.
And then it also affects us because we’re not used to… to… to getting our
hands dirty on this kind of project, eh, it’s really exceptional
so it’s very good, it’s very good that you’re doing this, it’s good.
So we’re going to put the key down, difficult moment… So that’s where you need someone
to push, you can lift… go ahead… So it’s going to stay your house
somewhere, I thought at the beginning it could make a superb place for
little newlyweds like that… Oh yes, you put a little bedroom up there
Yeah like that a little romantic but… But what are you going to do with it?
An interpretation office… Interpretation of what?
From the garden Oh yes, okay…
That is to say with exhibitions or…? With explanations… because the garden…
I don’t know, have you seen Thierry’s project? Oh yes, yes…
It’s complicated… The garden, which will soon be located in
this place, will indeed require many explanations… because it will be both
a restitution and an imaginary garden… Thierry Verdier, who designed it,
meticulously explored the place; and he found the large structures of the garden of the
Lord of Buisson, the first owner. Then his imagination and
historical knowledge did the rest. Everything that is there could have existed in 1545 and
moreover, all the plants that will be here, without exception, are plants that
are either endemic or therefore existed or were known in the humanist culture
of the 16th century, the beginning of the 16th century. So, said Buisson, if he came back
in a while when the garden was finished, he would feel a bit at home?
He will be a bit at home, especially since we are… we find elements, that’s the interest
of archaeology, we find elements like for example a mini jetty on this
axis, we find an element of the gutter so it’s not artificial so we are as faithful as
possible to what we find as information, after that we have to interpret a little bit
and that’s why we say, we’re not making a 16th century garden, we’re making… we’re in the logic of
invention and so it’s a creation and we have to accept ultimately and well that we’re creating
something that could have been but, which never existed. When we are here, we are more or less there, we are
finally right on our doorstep, so it is quite interesting because you see a little
bit of the scale of the project with the large… the large pergolas, the gazebos, all
this upper part where you actually have the orchard, then here, all the… all the
flowerbeds, the trimmed box trees; After this large colored part, here we have the part of the
water and behind this wall, well appear the benches on which we install all
the medicinal plants, the simples, etcetera. Is this a new experience for you?
Ah, it’s exceptional, we would never have imagined such an investment in a project which
ultimately is… is almost fragile compared to what we are, we are builders,
we make buildings which must remain, which must last and for the first time we say
: make something fragile but which will last for centuries, it’s a dream, well
I don’t think it ever happens in a career. It will take two years of work
to achieve this result – then the whole thing, garden and castle, will be
open to the public – this is the intention of Martine Harlin and her husband…
Today, Sunday, they are giving a foretaste of it…
They have invited all the inhabitants of the village of Bournazel and the surrounding area.
Many of them knew the castle, because until recent years it was
a retirement home. But they are far from imagining the results obtained by the restoration.
And later we’re going to visit in small groups and we’ll have to be careful, so we
‘ll have to not walk, we’ll have to listen carefully to the people who…we’ll have to not walk through them, eh.
very disciplined… I remember, very disciplined… Ah I’m happy, they’re arriving well, they’re
all… there are a lot of them so I’m delighted, and everyone seems well,
the sun is with us, everything… Martine Harlin takes care of the visit herself.
I have a very large group here… What we did here is that we… there was a corridor that
ran here, which we blocked because in fact the 16th century entrances were
there; So why these 16th century entrances, you will see first of all they are rounded
and it is extremely careful work. When we arrive in the 18th century, it is no
longer the same owners, it is no longer the creation of the castle so we do
simplified things. If you want to follow me… The villagers rediscover the castle…
But a castle stripped of all the additions that until now masked
the 16th century architecture. It’s extremely neat.
This lady, for example, is full of surprises… she
worked here for a long time, and she had never seen these chimneys working.
We were afraid that it would rain and everyone would freeze, we said to ourselves…
We had never seen these chimneys lit…
Is that true? Oh no, never…
And you’ve spent your entire career there? 38 years old!
It’s very moving for people who have worked here for a very long time, when
they tell me it’s the first time I’ve seen a fire in the fireplace it’s… it feels good…
So there, you won’t recognize it because it was the kitchens… so
the stove room and the kitchen as you knew it before, so there it will
shock you, let’s go for the shock When the modern partitions were
removed, the fireplaces and other moldings appeared intact…
There is a beautiful fireplace in the house, it is Ionic because at the level of the capital there
is a scroll. Here, what is quite interesting are the ceilings; When we
arrived there were many more beams but half were false and had been redone
in the 18th century; So, we are in the process of redoing French-style ceilings, having
kept the beams that were good, and how did we recognize them? Because there are drawings
on it. So you see them quite… here, you see them quite clearly. You see these drawings,
this decoration which was done with a stencil, where it is the clearest and the clearest, it is below, here,
there; there you see them very well. Late afternoon, the villagers visit
the wing of the castle under reconstruction. So in fact it is… it is a very
important corridor because it is perhaps the first corridor of architecture in France in the 16th
century, it is perhaps the first and in fact, behind there were rooms.
This place, which they had always considered a rest home,
became a historical monument in their eyes , 450 years after its construction.
I think it’s going very well, well I think everyone who’s here is happy;
It brings consideration to them and to me, well, it allows me to show them
that they also matter to me, they are part of the village, they are not anonymous,
they are people I enjoy meeting. Around a hundred people thus
rediscovered the Château de Bournazel. The works arouse public interest
; This was the goal of this day. Back to the construction site; A week has passed
since the arrival of the students from Montpellier. 8 a.m., the most
important moment of their internship will begin. Hervé is going to give them a very valuable recipe…
Well then, the aim of the maneuver is to not be sprawled on the stairs; You
put on your headphones, you pay attention… And as always with him, you
better be wide awake. You have already noticed when you
cook, that when you are told to put 50 grams of butter if you put 85, it does not make
the same recipe at all; It’s exactly the same system. What are we making here? We produce
a fine coating which is the most sophisticated coating that we can have in decorations and
ornaments, there you go, have I put you to sleep? So here, you are going to put ¾ of a bucket
of water, I am going to put 10 liters of lime, 1 and a half kg of natural sienna earth…
A recipe from the 16th century… The composition of Renaissance plasters.
At the moment when you apply these materials, in Italian it says: “innamorato”, that is to say
the moment when the mortar, when the paste that we apply is in love, that is to say it stiffens a
little, we have a slightly… a slightly trivial image but it is… the mortar is in love, the
paste is in love and it is the moment… at this moment of love when we can glaze it,
smooth it, and so there it is, it will be in the perfect state in which we expect it to be.
You see, just talking about it like that moves me… (laughs). Ah, there’s
silence in the ranks, eh (laughs). There are experienced applicators
and those who are just starting out… together they must achieve a uniform result.
Here, try to always have the same gesture, that is to say, as here we have lots
of imperfections you see which go in all directions, you have to try to cover them with the same gesture you are there …
Be careful it will splash, do not dirty the walls, now you are in a living room where there is
marble on the floor, it is a building, precious, you respect the silence, you concentrate
and you do things without dirtying … I like it when you are silent like that,
it is pleasant that is to say that each little word tears the silence, is that right …
Is it intimidating? Well, it’s… we have a bit of pressure of, of…
of not doing well enough in fact, because well, it ’s not… it’s not a small building, it’s
still a historic building so… no, we want to do very well and as it’s the
first time we’re doing it, we don’t really know… Thanks to the work of these students, the
garden pavilion is coming back to life – it’s their fifth intervention in Bournazel… last year it was
the framework and the roofing… this year, it’s the finishing of the walls in the style of
Renaissance palaces. In the evening, Thierry and Hervé are more than satisfied.
So even the imperfections that we see there ultimately are… they’re nothing at all because
it’s… besides, it’s a bit of a gesture, that’s what’s interesting in the coating
compared to the projected coatings, compared to the new systems, well not very new at the
Tyrolean, but at least there we have the gesture, there we have the memory of the hand, and it’s
true that leaving a… the trace of the tool, the trace of the hand means that there is
the man, it’s not the machine, and it’s all architecture to find the… the flesh
of the man present in this project. No, well done, your students… well done. Future architect…
Still some finishing work to do, but in any case, we’re on the right track…
And it makes for a nice little house, eh? Oh yes, too luxurious perhaps,
eh, for a garden pavilion… Are your hands feeling better by the way, are you
finished? It’s good, there are no more fingers… Um, it’s not finished but; Hervé
he told me that craftsmen have a big crust after all yeah
No but we have soft skin anyway, we have soft skin… but it’s sure that when you’re
pulling plaster, in the middle of winter, you see me, I started as a plasterer, uh, you pull
plaster in the middle of winter, well when you go to chat up a girl, you knit her stockings and you do
n’t caress her with the flat of your hand, you go with the back of the trowel because it’s
true that it’s ra…, we have rough hands that’s clear… something that
architects don’t have… that’s why they’re more… (a student: no we have
soft hands)… (Laughter). Soft hand, they have
sweaty hand and soft hand (laughs). Before leaving the castle
and returning to Montpellier, the students will finally visit
the stone cutters’ workshop near Rodez. It was they who, in the manner of the
French Renaissance, sculpted the elements of the future facade of the castle, remaining faithful to the
techniques of their distant predecessors. Dominique Vermorel runs this company.
Electricity certainly speeds things up when it comes to roughing out blocks,
but when it comes to detail, nothing beats working by hand.
It’s not too hard, right? Every time I’m surprised to see women working with stone…
Oh no, but I’m not saying it’s not good, but it’s such hard work
physically, I don’t know if you’ve ever tried it, it’s… you really have to…
Oh well, you build up your muscles for the first two years and then it’s fine…
In the workshop, there are two young women cutting stone – the first is called
Morgane… the second Stella. Dominique Vermorel claims that an amateur can immediately recognize
a woman’s hand on a sculpted stone. Do you want to try it to see the material
? It can also allow you to realize what it is, a little bit of the material… and
you see, you see, you shouldn’t take it like a pen, eh, there you go, (student: Ah it’s hard
eh…); you realize now that in architecture, what is a cut stone
, because well, it’s hours of a… of a trade to learn, a feeling,
a reflection, the stone cutter will find himself alone for hundreds of hours
sometimes with his stone, cutting his stone and then after it will be part of a building
and we start again for hundreds of years… It has to be… there you see… besides
the tool tells him that it is not in a good position… I am happy that the students,
well, can touch, realize because they will understand better tomorrow what it is…
And Stella returns to her facade block, which will soon take place on one of the
buildings currently being restored – among which the castle of Bournazel…
On its Renaissance facades, certain elements have been recut –
and today, a few months after their installation, it is almost impossible to
distinguish them from ancient sculptures. Last evening, in the courtyard of the castle, in the heart
of the masterpieces of the French Renaissance. Who wants some fizz?
Even if you lived in a castle for a week, that’s not nothing…
It’s true, we live surrounded by beauty, we look up and see metopes, sculptures, students… Is
that true? We didn’t have time to dress them in the 16th century… (laughs).
But what do they gain from doing this in this context?
I think that there is first of all an impregnation of a site, of an architecture, of a
decor, of a sort of precious quality, it is a beautiful architecture of the 16th century and then
we project ourselves into a small construction, quite minor, ordinary which seems secondary,
which disappears completely in the landscape and we realize that even a small construction
at the end of the world, well since it is in this space which is that of the French Renaissance,
has a quality and all the work I believe, of the students is that, it is to understand that
even in what appears minor there is a real beauty and this look at the beautiful object, simple,
I believe that this is a little bit of the message of this project and then above all to understand that
finally all these gestures which build the heritage well, they can be grandiose
through beautiful castles, they can also be precise in small architectures, I
believe that everything would be summed up a little bit to that… well I am a little A bit of a caricature, but that’s
a bit of the message we want to get across, the gesture, the beauty, this fortuitous beauty, eh,
as Balzac said, that we have to rediscover, there you go… I just wanted to thank Mrs. Harlin for
welcoming us, and especially Mr. Verdier and Hervé for teaching us everything we know,
and it’s really a wonderful experience and… What you know… you
anticipate a lot… (laughs). Come back and make me beautiful things again…
Hervé and Thierry plan to complete the garden pavilion next spring. This will be the 6th and
final edition of the Bournazel school project. It’s the end of summer; Eastern motorway
, direction the Netherlands. Erwin wants to show Jean-Paul the land
of mills and introduce him to the miller who will soon train him in his new profession.
The friends we’re going to see are people I met over the last 10 years while digging
into… into the history of Dutch mills because we … I realized when I
looked into the… Dutch milling, the… the tradition, that there is a sort of
Dutch guild, it’s not comparable to the French guild, but a sort of guild of millers
who are closely linked and proud of it and who safeguard the trade among themselves and who
provide training to young people, to less young people and so it’s a transmission of knowledge
that is close to my heart that I… that I see there. 5 hours later, arrival
in Holland, in the Rotterdam region. Today, there are about a thousand mills left in the country
– unlike in France, they were not destroyed here.
First stop: the must-see site for all windmill enthusiasts… Kinderdijk.
Ok Jean-Paul… Erwin and Jean-Paul are going to spend an afternoon there,
in the company of several Dutch friends… Kinderdijk, that is to say “the child’s dike
”: 19 mills from the 18th century, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
In 1400, there was a huge tidal wave like a tsunami in Holland, which devastated quite a
bit and it is said that after this… this gigantic flood, there was a basket with a
child that floated here and that… that was recovered along the dike and so it is
the dike of the child, of the children Kinderdijk, that’s it… it’s as old as anything…
These mills – called polder mills – were used to drain
the land of Holland. A country still under the threat of rising water levels,
as in 1953, the last natural disaster of this type in the country… it
caused the death of 1,800 people. Protecting the Netherlands from flooding has
been the mission of mills for 700 years, and with rare and terrible exceptions,
they have generally succeeded. These mills are witnesses to this fight
against the force of the water; Without them, half the country would be in flood zone… life
there would be impossible, the land uncultivable. This afternoon, Erwin, Jean-Paul and their
friends have an appointment with one of the millers from Kinderdijk. They will admire the
mechanisms of these unusual mills, which are part of Holland’s heritage.
When it’s running at force 7/8 and it’s still running, the pressure, the… landslide of
the water completely opens the… the gate, so much so that it… it’s running. There,
he starts off again a little faster. In the 15th/16th century, it allowed us to drain the
land, to, to… there you go, to create wealth and the mill was the engine… main engine,
so the Dutch knew it as the working tool that allowed the
country’s economic progress. The miller of this mill is called Ary; It is a
responsibility he inherited from his family – but one he takes on voluntarily. His mill, like other
polder mills in the Netherlands, is only used in emergencies – modern pumps have
now replaced it. Erwin is invited to visit the top floor, the machine there is impressive.
These types of mills are real racing beasts because they turn up to 80
wing passages per minute so it’s faster than… there’s more than one per second and the transmission
is the large wheel which is huge, accelerates the mechanism underneath even twice as fast
so they are real, real… real racing mills which have
been developed precisely to be powerful for the air for the air of this region.
Ari maintains his mill with lard, like his predecessors, in the 17th century. The
Kinderdijk mills must always be ready to operate in case of a sudden rise in water levels. At
the end of the first day, Jean-Paul discovered a landscape that had long since disappeared from France.
Phew, I was told that we had to eat from the mill but there, there it is full because
it is… well not full but, it is impressive the number of… mills and for
the number of m3 to… of water to stir, to raise. They were able to keep around twenty mills
grouped together, well protected today because it is a site listed as a UNESCO world heritage site,
so it clearly shows its… its historical value, and the maintenance is done, it lives, there are
millers who are there every day, that… that is especially visible today, so that is
the exceptional side, the grandeur of the site. Erwin has even more surprises in store
for Jean-Paul – because polder mills are larger than
traditional mills; This is why they can also serve as
living spaces. One of Erwin’s friends, Thijs, the owner of this mill,
moved into the ground floor of the former house of the miller and his family.
Thijs of course made some adjustments, transforming the
old children’s bedrooms into closets… which were rather modest in size.
Ah ok, a small child’s room, because at the time you shouldn’t lay your head down, we
were afraid that it would make your brain explode, the blood would flow down so we slept almost sitting up.
We lived… yes there were up to ten of them in that place, 10/12 (dialogue in Dutch
with Thijs), eh up to 13 people uh, there you go… speak in Dutch…
That there is a small attic, so the boys, the big boys they slept on… on beds of
straw up there, on sacks of straw it was, but well they all worked in the… the
fields or in the surroundings so it was only to get together in the evening and sleep; It was a hard life.
The mill is the emblem and pride of Holland; Moreover, the one in
Tijs often serves as a backdrop for newlyweds for their souvenir photos…
We love them so much that we also make replicas of them, which we place in the gardens.
Tijs has a particularly valuable one, that of one of the famous wood mills in
North Holland. Jean-Paul discovers that the mills not only allowed
the land to be drained and the economy to develop, but that they also changed its history.
Do you like it, Jean-Paul? Yes, it’s… admiring!
And then it continues to move, that’s what ‘s magical… Mouth open
there… I… Well, the system is that it’s inside
the mill, so with… with this… the mechanism is n’t quite that, but it makes it
move, when it turns it makes the… the bandsaw blade move by a sort of universal joint. And
so when we present a log of wood in front of us, well the blades will cut the log into several
slices, this is what was invented in 1592, it made it possible to saw large quantities of
wood to make… to make warships and boats that went to…
to Eastern countries, Indonesia, China, to look for spices and it made the fortune
of the Netherlands, faster than the English, the Portuguese and the French, because they
invented the sawing system like that. At the end of the 16th century, the Netherlands conquered
the world. For the country, it is the famous “ Golden Age”. Thanks to shipbuilding – and therefore
to wood mills – the Dutch became great conquerors and great
traders; They settled in Brazil, Java, India and Angola.
Lunch time has arrived; Tijs, a professional cook, prepared a
typical Dutch dish: mustard soup. Then Erwin’s parents arrive,
who live nearby… With them, another miller, his name is Mark;
It was he who would soon train Jean-Paul in the profession. They saw me leave on my bike and the
toolbox, they saw me, uh… discovering French culture with difficulty, uh… they
saw me come back with Evelyne, my French wife, so it’s quite a culture shock and then despite
all that, I managed to make my way, to be happy, that’s the main thing
and then… then they always supported me well, throughout my life, they said when the idea
was good they always encouraged me and then the whole family is following this adventure too, that we are
spending together today, so there it is a source of pride, in two words it is pride.
Last day of the trip to the Netherlands, heading east of the country, two hours
away, the Limburg region… This is the moment Jean-Paul has been waiting for since the
beginning of the trip, because this is the place where he will be introduced to the reality of his new job.
This is the St Leonard mill, built in 1750. Mark starts by rotating
the cage, to capture the best wind. Okay Jean-Paul?
That’s good… Mark has his miller’s diploma, a
Dutch specialty – because here there are
specialized vocational training courses. For the first time, Jean-Paul sees a
mill that regularly produces flour. A mill that can grind 100 kg
of grain in one hour – that’s one ton every day. Jean Paul already sees himself there.
Ah, it’s impressive, eh, the work, handling, putting up the bags, checking,
bringing down the flour… very, very physical work and especially when it’s windy, understandable,
when it’s cold or windy we stay nice and warm at home, but now I’ll be at
work, that’s impressive… Ah… good harvest anyway
They say this flour is better, what’s so special about it?
The flour made between the millstones, we will say that it… it is complete, there… there is still, there is the
bran, there is the… the grinding still contains all the elements of a cereal grain; Today,
the flour sorted in factories is so separated, so sorted that to recompose a
whole flour they add rather… rather matter and there… there everything, everything… everything is still
together so the taste is richer thanks to that. So there is a market potential because
people like to know the quality of their… of their land, so it is important. When
products are mixed too much, we trace, we lose traceability, we lose trust and the feeling
of belonging, of belonging to… to nature. Ah, he’s handsome, huh? If only tomorrow we will
have as much in Dosches… (Jean-Paul: he is very gentle…) not tomorrow but the day after tomorrow, eh…
Jean-Paul’s training will begin in a few months, when the Dosches mill will be
equipped and ready to grind cereals too. Back in France, in Champagne… it’s a
day of celebration for Erwin and for all the volunteers of his association.
Because today they are receiving a prize from the Heritage Foundation, which
rewards the quality of their achievements. And on this occasion a
small reception is given in a 15th century barn restored by the association
– it is located at the foot of the mill. In the meantime, the bread oven has
been completed by Céline and her friend from the Troyes heritage school… the
baker’s name is Bernard, he appreciates the quality of his future work tool.
We realize that it’s still small, it’s quickly small when it’s… Do
you go all the way with that? Is it long enough? We’ll make more,
eh… Oh, your hands are going to be hot. It’s touching that these tools will come
back to life in the hands of tradesmen and that… that it’s they who will…
enrich us because what interests me, what interests us in the association is
to launch… to launch challenges, to, to, to… yes, to overcome challenges but to… to see it
enriched by the people who take pleasure in piggybacking on it and enriching the site, that’s
the… that’s the objective of the association, it’s to safeguard the know-how of milling because
it quickly disperses, eh, we… it’s been 50 years since almost no one has made a wood fire
, so if we can group this knowledge together, well that’s all good, it’s all good.
It’s a very emotional moment for Erwin. Everyone in this room has contributed something to
the building or given us some wind in our wings, it’s true that this story is a beautiful
story of a couple first of all because without my wife Evelyne I would have… sorry, I’m starting to
cry… uh without my wife I certainly wouldn’t have done much or we would have
separated or I wouldn’t have done anything I don’t know, but fortunately we have been living this intensively together
for years; Uh my daughter Flore also suffered consequences but she is proud to be
here today too, so it’s great. Among you, there are also a lot of people who
help us, who motivate us and who make us dream for the future, so I thank them all.
So I will give the check for 5000 euros to the association.
Enough to move certain projects forward more quickly… Erwin is gradually seeing his dream come true.
A dream that he shares with his whole family… for his daughter Flore in
particular, this mill is a symbol. Well, I didn’t say too much nonsense?
But no… A moment of intimacy, after the ceremony…
On the contrary, you have precisely specified everything that was needed…
Okay… I had never really said it to Flore but it is a way of
offering her a little bit… a little bit of home, finally the history of home which also has
its history here, in France but as it is shared between the two histories, its…
its roots are in both, in the two stumps of earth… uh, here, well, she is
proud of what we have done, what I have done with Evelyne and the association and yes it is also
a wink so that she does not forget that in Holland, they are there too and that… ; That it is in her
interest to defend this dual nationality.