from the old French word

from the old French word ‘gerber’ meaning to gather into a sheaf - the town’s Coat of Arms features three gold sheaves of wheat - though it was briefly renamed Gerbe-la-Montagne during the French Revolution when any names associated with hated royals (roy meaning king) were ‘cancelled.’ The village’s position made it a popular target - including from the Vikings who came up the Seine River on raids in the 10th century, and even after, when they were granted neighbouring Normandy as a settlement. William the Conqueror laid siege to the town in 1078 and lost to his own son William Rufus. And it was fought over during the 100 Years War - the English were defeated here on May 9, 1453, against a French army led by two former companions of Joan of Arc who had been executed four years earlier in nearby Rouen. Pillaged many times over, its castle destroyed, and with a population decimated by plague, Gerberoy went into decline and disappeared from history in the 17th century. And there it stayed until a famous artist arrived and changed Gerberoy’s fortunes. Gorgeous gardens of Henri Le Sidaner Macarons de Gerberoy What to see in Gerberoy Colourful Norman-style timber-framed 17th and 18th century houses line the cobbled streets, one of the most famous being the ‘blue house’ next to a towered gate that led to the former castle. Dating to 1691, the postcard-pretty house has always been painted blue using dye made from woad which was grown in abundance in Picardy in the Middle Ages. Narrow alleyways festooned with flowers and dotted with tea rooms, artists galleries, cafés and restaurants snake their way round the village. The 17th century market halls and landmark historical stone-built covered wells are superbly preserved, and the collegiate church of Saint-Pierre, rebuilt in the 15th century after being burned down by the English, and whose walls are hung with Aubusson tapestries, is well worth a visit. Statue of Henri le Sidanier in the garden “I will probably still think on the last day when I disappear, of the humblest dwelling in Gerberoy, where clumsy fingers come to hang on the window shutters the single flowering stem that a cluster of roses will have weighed down…” - Henri Le Sidaner The rose festooned terrace of the Jardin des Ifs But the town’s big claim to fame is the former home and glorious gardens of renowned post- Impressionist painter Henri Le Sidaner (1862- 1939), who fell under Gerberoy’s spell when he visited in 1901 and soon-after, longing to live a country life, bought a beautiful house there when his friend, the sculptor August Rodin, urged him to follow his dreams. Then, as now, it looked as if nothing had changed for hundreds of years. Sidaner painted the tranquil beauty of the village over and over and created stunning terraced gardens over the ruins of the castle, which became a source of inspiration for his art, just as his contemporary, 20 | The Good Life France The Good Life France | 21