Note the superb Gothic chevet which must be seen it for its system of flying buttresses. Then looking out over place Saint-Michel there is a very attractive doorway . Inside, the chancel (34m high and lit by stained-glass windows ) has a depth an..

Mounted on its hill and protected by a Gallo-Roman wall, the old town of Le Mans shaded by its cathedral is made up of cobbled lanes punctuated by stairways and bordered by half-timbered and stone houses. This tranquil place, where time seems to stan..

Tracing the history of the 24 Heures du Mans (Le Mans 24 Hour Race), this museum has around 100 vehicles, many of them race winners, displayed in a modern and informative manner. Display cases, models and touch screen technology recount the story of ..

This elegant house was built in 1460 for a Le Mans alderman. It is embellished by an arched door, with ridge pieces on its historiated corbels, and a half-timbered sculpted façade. As far as poor Bérangère (wife of Richard the Lionheart) is concerned..

Brilliantly restored along the Sarthe waterfront, this 1 300m-long construction with 11 towers is one of the finest of its type still extant in France. Under the rays of the sun, the alternation of bricks and black and white geometric motifs crowned ..

Established in the old bishop's house built on the site of the Tessé family residence, whose fine picture collections were seized in 1793. Note the Plantagenet enamelwork , an important collection of Italian paintings (the little saint with narrowed..

This belongs to the Abbey of St-Pierre-de-la-Couture then situated in open country. The facade bears witness to the four centuries of its construction ; the Gothic towers (end of 13C) the door (13 and 14C) and the stained glass windows (14C) The nave..

This attractive 12C building was originally the sick room for the hospital that Henry II Plantagenet founded in 1182 to expiate the murder of Thomas Becket. Just a legend? The elegant vaults are in any case in the style called Plantagenet.

This Abbey situated In a rural setting beside the Huisme, was founded in 1229 by Queen Bérangère. The monastic buildings are organised around a cloister. The cloister is home to a refectory, a scriptorium and a dormitory. The church is from the 13C b..

Jean-Charles Alphand (1817-1891) designed this garden laid out with rocks and a cascading stream. He was a collaborator with Haussman, and then he became the landscape gardener for Buttes-Chaumont, Montsouris Park and the Bois de Boulogne in Paris.

Famous for its view over the superb chevet of the St Julien's cathedral this large somewhat cold square occupied by parking lot, has been traced back to the site of the Convent of the same name.

On this peaceful square at n°1 at the foot of the cathedral is the canonical residence where the satirical writer Paul Scarron (1640-1660) stayed. He was the author of Roman comique and first husband of the future Mme de Maintenon. Note the litt..

This was built around 1760 within the walls of the counts of Maine's palace. Looking to the right on the staircase leading to the Rue Rostov-sur-le-Don, note the southeast flank of the ramparts of the old town.

The corner post of this wood panelled house supports a capital with a dead head. In the same square there is another house called the house of the green pillar, and a bit further on there is the old Arcy hotel. (16C).

Built in the 15C it was lived in the 17C by Nicolas Denizot , poet and painter, friend of Ronsard and of du Bellay. The two friends are represented there holding each other by the hand and proffering an ecu.

Crowned by high French-style roofs, this 16C residence is situated at the entrance to the rue d'Ecrevisse.

On display in this museum of history and ethnography , in a residence traditionally associated with Queen Bérangère, visitors can see regional furniture and be surprised by the popular verve, colour and fantasy of the glazed Sarthe pottery which is ..

Along with his brother Orville, Wilbur Wright (1867-1912) was one of the pioneers of aviation. Situated at the entrance to the tunnel under the old town (on the Sarthe side), you will see the monument by Paul Landowski commemorating his “aeroplane ..

This 14C collegiate church, now restored, is the setting for temporary exhibitions.

At the corner of this street bordered by wood-panelled houses, note the column, in particular how its shaft is decorated with keys; this was historically the trade sign of a locksmith.