Elizabeth Bonner bought the estate in 2005 and the restoration work began on the château. Renovating the main house took several years, after which Elizabeth turned her attention to restoring the farmhouse, cottage and guardian's house. She oversaw the work herself, focusing on preserving original features while incorporating modern comforts and elegant touches. Each winter, the cycle of renovating and maintaining the buildings and park begins again.
If you are interested in life on the Courtomer estate, the French countryside or local history, subscribe below to receive 'Letters from Elizabeth' and other news from Courtomer. Otherwise, browse the archive to follow Elizabeth’s restoration journey and her passion for France and its culture. Simply click on the category that interests you the most.
❝ « Deauville! Que de m’as-tu vu!” exclaimed Clementine, as Michel piloted the Thunderbird along the river Touques. Deauville sits along the south back of the river, and its sister seaside colony, Trouville, a quieter, more sedate station balneaire, is on the other... ❞
Read More❝ One night, after we had been installed in our leaky, freezing château for almost a year, and had seen spring flourish, summer‘s golden gaze come and go, and autumn pass into early winter, I lay awake staring into the darkness and listening to the wind blow the rain against the windows… ❞
Read More❝ When a provincial comes into Paris, no moment goes unmeasured and unspent. The tenderness of the morning’s light on the creamy buildings…the rosy fingers of dawn upon the grey rooftops…❞
Read More❝ Lights move back and forth across the fields behind the Chateau until the wee hours of the morning, as huge machines cut and thresh golden sheaves of ripe wheat. They start again at daybreak… ❞
Read More❝ Pascal is an anesthesiologist. But Henry didn’t even ask him if he missed his old life in Paris. Pascal was too busy trying to keep a little calf away from its mother’s udder, as he squirted the last drop from her left rear teat into the shiny stainless-steel bucket. When Henry was little, we kept a small herd of Jersey milk cows… ❞
Read More“What’s Turgot doing here?” asked my husband, standing stock still in front of a portrait of a
cheerful-looking man in a thickly curled wig.
It was a sunny spring day, and we were visiting the Chateau de Courtomer. The edifice was
then on the market for the second time in its long history.
Read MoreDevastated…and reconstructed…
Looking at the statue of Marie Harel in the market square, we noticed that it had been donated by “Men and women making cheese in Van Wert, Ohio.”
Read MoreAbout an away from Courtomer, we crossed the bridge over the river Vie at Livarot and stopped for tea at Vimoutiers. Here in the square is a statue of Marie Harel -- credited with the invention of Camembert cheese.
Read MoreA couple of years ago, dear friends decided to move from Paris and take on a small Manoir in Pays d’Auge. This unique little region of Normandy is just an hour and a half from the Chateau.
Read MoreThe gardener of Chateau de Courtomer.
Read MoreMaking music to celebrate the hunt is an ancient tradition.
Read MorePhotos from the Courtomer schoolhouse, from Gilles who grew up in Courtomer.
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