Essay () is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France. The town is mainly known nowadays for its motorsports tracks, and hosted a round of the 2011 European Rallycross Championship.
Geography
Essay is made up of the following collection of villages and hamlets, Beaufossé, Montperroux, Echuffley and La Renouillère.
The commune is in the Normandie-Maine Regional Natural Park.
A river, La Vézone, flows through the commune.
Notable buildings and places
Le circuit des Ducs - is a racing circuit that was built in 1975. The circuit that has been used to stage a round of the French rallycross championship and Fol'Car races.
National heritage sites
The commune has two buildings/areas listed as a Monument historique.
Domaine de Beaufossé is an 18th-century house and estate, declared as a Monument historique in 2001. The gardens of the estate were landscaped by Henri and Achille Duchêne. The estate grounds are shared with the neighbouring commune of Boitron. Chapel of the Dukes of Alençon is a 12th-century chapel that was part of a castle originally built by William of Bellême in 1088. It was listed as a monument in 1975.
Notable people
Marie d'Alençon (1373 – 1417) a French noblewoman, a Princess of the Blood, and the wife of Jean VII of Harcourt was born here. John I, Duke of Alençon (1385 – 1415), a French nobleman was born here. François Robichon de La Guérinière (1688–1751) was a French riding master and one of the most influential writers on the art of dressage, was born here. Charles Éléonor Dufriche-Valazé (1751 - 1793) jurist, lawyer, and politician of the French Revolution was the first mayor of Essay in 1790. Pierre Louis Roederer - (1754 –1835) a French politician, economist, and historian became mayor here in 1830.
See also Communes of the Orne department Normandie-Maine Regional Natural Park
References
External links Local motor sports