Prieuré de Foussais

The Prieuré de Foussais is a former priory located in the heart of Foussais-Payré, a “Petite Cité de Caractère” in the Vendée department of the Pays de la Loire region in western France. It stands next to the remarkable Romanesque church of Saint-Hilaire.

Around 990 Guillaume IV of Aquitaine (known as Guillaume Fier-à-Bras) and his wife Emma gave the church of Saint-Hilaire and its dependencies to the powerful Abbey of Bourgueil in Touraine. A priory was established there and remained under the authority of Bourgueil for centuries. Monks lived in the prioral buildings until the French Revolution.

The prioral residence was largely rebuilt in the 15th century at the same time as major works on the church. It suffered severe damage during the Wars of Religion (notably around 1568). In the 17th century the complex was restored, enlarged and partly fortified (traces of a bretèche and loopholes remain). After being sold as national property in 1791 it fell into relative neglect.

In 1980–1981 the municipality purchased the former priory and restored it. Since then it has served as the Town Hall (Hôtel de Ville) of Foussais-Payré. The protected elements — façades and roofs of the prioral logis, the vaulted porch that crosses the building, the medieval cellar, the entrance portal on the former CD 49 road, and the old sculpted chimneys — were inscribed as a Monument historique on 24 September 1986.