They passed between the drops - not those that fall from the sky, in this scorching mid-September weather, but those, Covid-19 obliges, which pushed many French prefectures and municipalities to cancel the Heritage Days on these 19 and September 20, 2020.
Marseille, Bordeaux, Nice, Lille, Dunkirk and even Boulogne-sur-Mer had to give up this long-awaited meeting for players in the cultural world.
But in Esquelbecq, a town of just over 2,000 souls located in the Nord department, in the Dunkirk hinterland, in the heart of French Flanders, the event will take place.
A relief for Johan Tamer-Morael, owner of the Château d'Esquelbecq, an imposing medieval stronghold listed as a Historic Monument.
"We have been preparing these days for months. We are lucky to have escaped the cancellations, we have the impression of being the village of Gauls who resists", jokes this Franco-Lebanese from the third generation of current owners.
"Of course, this will not exempt us from strictly applying the sanitary instructions issued by the prefect: wearing a mask compulsory, providing hydroalcoholic gel and a modified visit route".
A Renaissance gem typical of French Flanders
To avoid overcrowding, some rooms have been closed to the public and entrances and exits signposted.
But above all, the emphasis was on the garden, as indicated by the nicely poetic theme chosen by the Association du château d'Esquelbecq for this third edition of the Heritage Days at the estate: "What is we sow ".
In addition to visiting an open-air exhibition devoted to the agriculture of tomorrow, visitors are invited to stroll between the trellised vegetable gardens, the rose garden, the greenhouse, the landscaped park, the bulb dovecote, the bridge, the moats, the serpentine river, and the many other elements that make up this extraordinary architectural ensemble opening onto the main square of the village.
"The Esquelbecq garden is said to be the only surviving Renaissance garden, and this is largely true, says Aline Le Coeur, landscape architect and garden historian. Although it was extensively redesigned in the 18th century and in the 19th century, he remained faithful to the drawing published in 1641 by Canon Antoine Sanderus in his book 'Flandria Illustrata'. Walking there is like being projected in a Flemish painting of the time. exudes an extraordinary charm. "
Titanic site
Aline Le Cœur began working on the garden of Château d'Esquelbecq about fifteen years ago.
At the time, it was in a very degraded state, remembers the landscaper, just like the castle itself, abandoned following a tragedy: the collapse of its dungeon on a Monday morning in 1984. In its fall, the pile of stone destroyed the entire North Wing, where the owners were staying.
A stroke of luck: they had left the place the day before.
The collapse thus did not make any physical victims, but delivered the places to the abandonment and deeply bruised the inhabitants of the village, very attached to "their" castle, as the plastic photographer Stéphane Fedorowsky tells it in an interactive book, Mémoires.
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It was not until 2006 that the first renovations started, first undertaken by Mr. and Mrs. Tamer-Morael, then by their son Johan, 41, who has devoted himself almost full time to the project for three years.
Reconstruction of the walls, the framework and the roofs, restoration of the reception rooms, replacement of the windows, the plumbing or even the electricity… The site is titanic, and to this day, the castle is still not inhabited, but "Johan Tamer-Morael has a lot of ambitions for the place, notes Judicaël de la Soudière-Niault, heritage architect in charge of its restoration. He does not have large means, but he knows how to surround himself with volunteers. and communicate his passion for making this business successful. "
"We must dream"
In fact, the Château d'Esquelbecq association constantly brings together legions of goodwill, those responsible for welcoming gardeners, experienced hydraulic engineers and other Tour de France Companions who come to work there.
The association has also won several competitions (Prix Villandry in 2017, Grand Trophy for the most beautiful restoration from Figaro magazine 2017, Prix des Vieilles Maison Françaises in 2019, to name a few) which enabled it to launch works, each site being matched by Drac (Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs) up to 40% to 50% of the amounts invested.
Building on this collective momentum, Johan Tamer-Morael wants to move forward.
"What we are sowing is a declaration of love for this property. It has always been cherished over the centuries, and we want to continue to keep it alive, no matter what."
The next step in its rehabilitation is the curettage of the moat, a project costing several hundred thousand euros for which the association launched a sponsorship campaign a year ago.
As for the tower that collapsed in 1984, will she ever see her again?
"We have the technical means to rebuild it, assures Judicaël de la Soudière-Niault. There are many projects to be carried out as a priority, but it would be great to find this vertical element, typical of a medieval castle. a dream that I hope will be achieved in the medium term. "
The dream is also the word that comes to the mind of Aline Le Cœur when evoking the castle of Esquelbecq.
"When we walk in its gardens, we are immersed in beauty. These flowers, this water, these runes, these gables with sparrow steps (that is to say stepped, Ed) ... Everything is dreaming. in these times of coronavirus, it is more important than ever, we must dream. "
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