1343: Eudes IV of Burgundy, Duke of Burgundy, Count of Burgundy (Franche-Comté), Count of Artois, and grandson of Saint Louis, orders the creation of the mill for the benefit of the monks of the Val Saint-Benoit priory, established in 1240 in the forest visible from the terrace. This priory still exists and is occupied by nuns.

1347: A trial takes place between the monks and the lords of Loges, who want to reserve the water rights for themselves.

16th century: The widow of Gaspard d’Epinac seizes the millstones (one of which is now used as the base of the fireplace). Without the millstones, the mill is no longer useful and no longer generates tolls paid by peasants for milling flour. Never short of ideas, the monks use the water's driving force to install a hemp beater.

1646: Prior Gaspard de Pernes sells the mill to his brother Louis de Pernes, Count of Epinac, who transforms it into a blast furnace and forge (this is where the hamlet's name comes from today). Due to its activity, the mill is then called "the red mill." To supply this furnace, where 20 blacksmiths work, the forest visible from the terrace is cleared.

1694: At this date, we lose track of the forge's activity. This date corresponds to Colbert's reform of forest administration. The state forest of "Battées," visible from the terrace, owes its name to this era. In the new rationalized forest management, the "battée" is an area where logging is authorized every 25 years.

18th century: The mill resumes its original activity.

French Revolution: The mill, owned by Jules Charles Henri, Duke of Clermont-Tonnerre, Marshal and Peer of France, is sold as national property to the Bonnamour family.

1867: The Bonnamour family installs new milling machinery and is authorized to continue its activity by ministerial decree. At the time, the mill becomes the most efficient flour mill in the department.

1903: The mill's performance over 30 years brings fortune to the Bonnamour family. The heir decides to stop the activity and lives off his wealth in various residences in the vicinity and in more distant regions, such as the manor house on the other side of the road or the Château de Fretoy, 3 km away.

1943: Maurice Défontaine acquires the mill and restarts the milling operation to produce flour from the buckwheat harvested on the property. He builds a pigsty, and the flour is used to feed pigs, cows, and goats. The animals are used to produce meat and charcuterie, which are sold to butchers and delicatessens along a route from the mill to Amiens, where he owned a farm.

1959: The milling activity is stopped, and the 4-ton, 6-meter diameter water wheel is dismantled to install an Ossberger electric turbine.

1966: The millstream becomes an experimental fish enclosure by prefectural decree.

2021: The Moulin des Ducs is renovated and becomes the guesthouse you are staying in. During the renovations, a Gallo-Roman stele is found embedded in one of the walls, suggesting an existence before 1343. An investigation is ongoing...

Looking forward to seeing you soon.