Le Château du Bois de la Noë

We welcome you throughout the year, with a choice of five rooms inside the château. Also available is our gîte, situated in the château grounds.

The Château du Bois de la Noë ,"folie nantaise" of the 17th century

The oldest documents consulted, show that in 1688 the house of Bois de la Noë was owned and inhabited by Isabelle Elisabeth Biré whose cousin Maurille Biré was Lord of Sénaigerie Bouaye. Isabelle and then Thomas Biré, lived in the Château du Bois de La Noë until 1731. 

• In the mid-18th century, in 1749, Nicolas Arnous, a leading shipbuilder from Nantes, transformed La Noë into "folie nantaise" (country residence). 

• After a few intermediate buyers, the property was sold in 1803 to René Giraud and his wife Marie-Anne Blanchard. The Giraud family retained ownership of the site until the late 19th century. At this time, it covered 500 acres with some of the rarest trees in the world, making it the largest land ownership in the area. In 1884, Pierre Auguste Giraud died and so began a long and laborious succession. This led to the dismantling of the land: the château and part of the park were sold in 1892 to the Earl of Melquié, other land, farms and houses were scattered among different local buyers. 

• During the First World War, the town of Bouaye was the place of confinement of the 28th Company of the 45th Territorial Infantry Regiment. The Château du Bois de la Noë and its outbuildings were requisitioned for house troops and officers. During the First World War, the town of Bouaye was the place of confinement of the 28th Company of the 45th Territorial Infantry Regiment. The Château du Bois de la Noë and its outbuildings were requisitioned for house troops and officers. 

• In 1918, the Château du Bois de la Noë became the property of M. and Mme. Janning who exhibited and sold paintings and antiques. The grounds were open to the people of Nantes, who were invited to walk amongst the trees and rest in the dairy of the château. 

• In 1927, M. Bonnet, an entrepreneur from Algiers, acquired La Noë as a holiday home in France. Luxury and modern comfort were widely present. The site was then entrusted to the management of Mr. Huguel, and became a luxury hotel and restaurant (Aristide Briand, Paul Bellamy, Gabriel Guist'hau were among the guests). Joseph Caillaud, Council President, travelling to Nantes on April 25, 1932, for a Republican meeting, should have dined there but a fire in the west tower forced guests to retreat to Rezé. On the night of July 31, 1934, a second major fire broke out. The fire spread quickly and assistance was slow. It was not until early morning that firefighters from Nantes, were finally able to control the fire. The damage was considerable. The château was quickly resold to M. Guichaud who restored it to live there with his family. 

• During World War II, Le Bois de la Noë was subject to German occupation. Post-war, the Guichauds opened the grounds for many parish shows and fairs. Under pressure from his heirs and from the urbanization of Bouaye, Mr. Guichaud decided to leave Noë in 1966 after having created a subdivision in the park and some woods neighbouring the château. This left a little over 2 acres of land around the château. Four families followed, until the arrival in 2011 of Patricia and Philippe Gonnord who have opened the gîte and chambre d’hotes, continuing the tradition of their predecessor. They are also working on the restoration of the château.