Mairé-Levescaultt is a commune in the

Deux-Sèvres Deux-Sèvres (, Poitevin-Saintongese: ''Deùs Saevres'') is a French department. ''Deux-Sèvres'' literally means "two Sèvres": the Sèvre Nantaise and the Sèvre Niortaise are two rivers which have their sources in the department. It had a ...

department in western

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. (Not to be confused with

Mairé Mairé () is a commune in the Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France. (Not to be confused with Mairé-Levescault, in the same general area). Demographics See also *Communes of the Vienne department The follo ...

, in the same general area).

History

The history and derivation of the name of Mairé-L'Evescault are closely linked to that of Saint Junian (''Junien''), the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

Poitou Poitou ( , , ; ; Poitevin: ''Poetou'') was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers. Both Poitou and Poitiers are named after the Pictones Gallic tribe. Geography The main historical cities are Poitiers (historical ...

ploughmen. He was born in the year AD 500 or AD 501 in the area of "Briosso" (now called Briançais) on an estate named "Champagné" which still exists close to the village of

in the commune of Perigné, Deux-Sèvres, and was educated by his parents who were

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization (cultural), Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire in Roman Gaul. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, Roman culture, language ...

nobility. Although his name is undoubtedly of

Pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

origin, coming from the

Roman god Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the Latin literature, literature and Roman art, visual arts of the Romans, and is a form of Roman folklore. "Roman mythology" may also refer to the modern study of these ...

s Juno/

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a Jupiter mass, mass more than 2.5 times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined a ...

, he was dedicated to the service of God from his earliest childhood and was instructed in all the

sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

and

human sciences Human science (or human sciences in the plural) studies the philosophical, biological, social, justice, and cultural aspects of human life. Human science aims to expand the understanding of the human world through a broad interdisciplinary appro ...

which were taught at that time. Nothing else is known about his early life but we re-encounter Junien as a young man living as a hermit in a place called Bois Trappeau in the commune of Ardilleux in Deux-Sèvres. In 559, King

Clotaire I Chlothar I, sometime called "the Old" (French: le Vieux), (died December 561) also anglicised as Clotaire from the original French version, was a king of the Franks of the Merovingian dynasty and one of the four sons of Clovis I. With his eldes ...

made him a gift of land on which to found a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

dedicated to the rule of Saint Benoît. This isolated place evoked memories of his childhood home and Junien named it "Mariacus" - subsequently "Mairé". The "L'Evescault" was added after a great religious festival in

Poitiers Poitiers is a city on the river Clain in west-central France. It is a commune in France, commune, the capital of the Vienne (department), Vienne department and the historical center of Poitou, Poitou Province. In 2021, it had a population of 9 ...

to which Junien was invited by Queen Radagonde who raised him to the same rank as the other

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

s or "Les Evêques" who were present. Hence the name Mairé-L'Evescault. The

was partially destroyed during the wars of

Pepin the Short the Short (; ; ; – 24 September 768), was King of the Franks from 751 until his death in 768. He was the first Carolingian dynasty, Carolingian to become king. Pepin was the son of the Frankish prince Charles Martel and his wife Rotrude of H ...

and

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...

but survived for another thousand years. It was finally demolished during the French Revolution, the stone being re-used for local construction and the lands reverting to their farming origins.

The commune today

The commune is now a sprawl of scattered villages with a population of approximately 560.