Lagny-le-Sec - Pays de Valois Tourist Office

Lagny-le-Sec, a story to discover

Located at the gateway to the Île-de-France region, Lagny-le-Sec is a village rich in history, often overlooked. Its territory extends to the hamlet of Chantemerle and includes vast agricultural lands, including a farm to the south that still bears witness to this rural vocation today.

Prestigious origins

The estate of Lagny-le-Sec, formerly called Latiniacum, was given by King Dagobert I ^to the Royal Abbey of Saint-Denis, illustrating the site's importance from the early Middle Ages. However, the village's origins likely date back to antiquity. This is certainly supported by the discovery in 1833 of some twenty ancient tombs, some of which contained headless skeletons. Nevertheless, it was during the medieval period that the village flourished, as Lagny-le-Sec bears the profound mark of the Templars, who established a commandery there as early as 1209. This commandery, known as the House of the Temple, was established after the knights acquired land, rights of justice, and a lordship from the monks of La Charité-sur-Loire. It was one of the six commanderies of the Order of Malta in the diocese of Meaux. They also owned a farm and a chapel dedicated first to Saint Christopher and then to Saint John the Baptist, both now gone, as well as the Chantemerle farm. In total, they possessed nearly 217 hectares of land. This commandery was a dependency of the Commandery of Saint John of Senlis and, when the order was suppressed at the beginning of the 14th ^century , it reverted to the Hospitallers of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem. In the 18th ^century , during the French Revolution, all their property became national assets, and the following century, the buildings were unfortunately destroyed.

Historical figures

An emblematic place in the village is the current Pernin establishment, formerly the Hôtel de la Bonne Rencontre. It takes its name from a memorable episode: it was here that the Prince of Conti and the Prince of Condé, two cousins who were at odds at the time, killed a deer during a hunt and sealed their reconciliation. Today, this building is considered to belong to the town of Le Plessis-Belleville, but at the time, it was indeed on the territory of Lagny.
A significant event in national history is also linked to Lagny since, on August 12, 1429, Joan of Arc stopped there during her campaign.

The Knight of Jars, a unique figure

The village is also linked to the fate of the Chevalier de Jars, François II de Rochechouart (c. 1595–1670), a colorful figure in French history. A member of the Order of Malta from 1607, involved in numerous diplomatic and political intrigues of the 17th ^century , he narrowly escaped the death penalty in 1633 just as he was about to mount the scaffold. After a life of exile, conspiracies, and captivity, he was appointed head of the Lagny commandery in 1647, on the recommendation of Cardinal Mazarin and at the request of Queen Henrietta Maria of England.

The XX^e century and global conflicts

The 20th ^century also left its mark on the village's memory. During the First World War, a group of training divisions was located a little south of the current Plessis-Belleville airfield.

During the Second World War, on the night of July 4-5, 1944, a B24H bomber was shot down and crashed south of Lagny, killing all eight crew members. A commemorative stele honors them near the war memorial.

Cultural and architectural heritage

The Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, whose chancel and apse date from the 16th ^century , was partially destroyed in 1870. The nave, rebuilt in the 19th ^century , differs in height from the chancel, giving the whole structure a distinctive silhouette. Romanesque in style, it houses a bell from 1739, named Adrienne Marie Françoise, and offers a pleasant interior, notably thanks to its painted columns, Romanesque capitals, and stained-glass windows. Renovations were undertaken in 2019-2020 to preserve the building.

As for the Château de Lagny, rebuilt in the 19th ^century in the 17th-century brick and stone style ^, it likely replaced an older residence. Converted into a retirement home, it was purchased by the municipality in 1995 before being demolished in 2017 due to its dilapidated state. Its park, now open to the public, remains a popular recreational spot for local residents.