Rumors swirl around the Pavillon de chasse du duc de Guise. It’s whispered that its name is merely tradition. The title of Duc de Guise wasn’t even used in the 18th century when the Pavillon de chasse was built. The Pavillon de chasse resembles a “folie,” a pleasure house. Its street facade is unremarkable. But the garden facade, made of dressed stone, is captivating. It features a beautiful three-sided central avant-corps. In 1726, Nicolas Naudier, controller of the Royal Glass Manufactory of Reuilly, acquired the Pavillon de chasse. The story then takes a turn. In 1792, fourteen nuns were expelled from the convent of the Filles de Sainte-Aure. They faced denouncement and imprisonment at Port-Royal Abbey in 1794. After sixteen months of confinement, they resolved to continue their lives of perpetual adoration of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. One of these nuns, Sister Marie-Thérèse, known as Antoinette Desfontaines, became a teacher in 1796. She purchased the Pavillon de chasse in 1809. Her boarding school, with about one hundred students, moved into the Pavillon de chasse in 1816. Mother Desfontaines went on to establish the Congregation of the Sisters of Sainte-Clothilde in 1821. Their mission was the Christian education of young girls. Much later, in 1976, the architect Roland Schweitzer constructed new buildings behind the Pavillon de chasse for the Sainte-Clothilde Institution. To glimpse the charming facade of the Pavillon de chasse du duc de Guise today, you must take the path on the left side leading to a sports center. It’s a hidden gem tucked away, waiting to share its layered history.
Église Notre-Dame de l’Air
Beneath what appears to be a simple stone and wood structure lies a history interwoven with faith aviation and community.