This post is the continuation of: La Vicomté de Turenne (II)
France’s most beautiful villages of the Corrèze
Collonges-la-Rouge
The village headquarters the french association of the Plus Beaux Villages de France, created by its mayor in the 1980's. The Rouge (red) in its name refers to the red sandstone that was used in the construction of the village. Formed millions of years ago the stone is found naturally to the north of the village. The deep red color, that becomes especially contrasting with the green hillsides after rain, is caused by the iron oxide within the stone.
A first church was build here in the 8th century and Collonges la Rouge developed into a prosperous little town with six 'chateaux' and became a renowned wine producer, till the Phylloxeria epidemic wiped out the vines in the 19th century. The village switched to the production of walnut and walnut oil. The population dwindled from almost 2000 in the 16th century, to just 500 hundred today.
During 1930's the architectural integrity of the village became protected and restored including the church, mansions, castles, houses and pilgrim’s hostels. As a result, it is possible today to walk through the 15th century defense wall gates and well preserved street scapes in a deep red color.
A visit to the Saint Pierre church (3) will puzzle you with a wealth of symbolism and a quite unique 'double nave', that divided the church for use by the two different 'cults'. The green in the coloured glass windows contrasts with the red walls, and a sky-well illuminates the centre.
Walk through the village and admire the Castel de Maussac (1), Castel de Vassinhac (2), Halle and four banal (4), Maison Boutang du Peyrat (5), Castel de Benges (6), Maison de la Sirene (7), Manoir de Beauverie (8) and the Town hall (9) along the way.
A little side-step on how Collonges la Rouge major Charles Ceyrac founded the association of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France.
Curemonte
Hugging the rocky ridge line overlooking the Maumont and Sourdoire valleys, Curemonte was build on a strategic defensive position. Six towers dominate the skyline build by three lords united to defend the village. One of the lesser known ‘most beautiful villages’ of the Corrèze, with 7 noble houses, 3 castles, 3 churches, a market hall, fountains and other small heritage, this village is really worth a detour.
Most of the buildings visible today date back to the 14th and 15th centuries. Towers, main buildings and the fortified enclosure of the castles of Saint Hilaire and Plas dominate. In the village, the Saint-Barthélemy church, patron saint of Curemonte, was built in the 12th century. Over time enlarged with a chapel, and a sacristy. In the 17th century, it was decorated with a painted wooden altarpiece which has recently been restored by the Friends of Curemonte into its original polychrome glory.
The rural exodus and First World War affected the village, bringing to population down from 1200 at the beginning of the 20th century, to only 216 inhabitants today. A walk through the village will reveal large architecture and interesting small heritage like the Grotto (1), Noble houses (2), St.Hilaire and de Plas castles (3) and the Saint Bartlelemy church (4). But the real attraction lies in looking back at the village, nested in the surrounding countryside, from the hiking trails. Every season has its charm, with poppies popping out in spring, autumn leaves, and gentile Limousin cattle year round.
Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne
The name Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne is pretty self-explanatory, as it literary translates as 'beautiful place on the Dordogne (river)'. The village was the furthest stop upstream for the Gabares supporting a number of hostels for the shippers who plied the river until the 19th century. Especially chestnut and oak wood were collected upstream and send down to Libourne in the Bordeaux wine areas to serve as supports for the vines, and to make wine barrels.
The abbey of Saint Pierre in the centre of the village was constructed back to the 8th century under the stewardship of the vicomté of Turenne (see above). At first sight a pale gray building, but closer inspection of the entrance (considered a 'chef-d'œuvre' of roman art) and interior allow for some interesting discoveries.
The bourg maintains a medieval atmosphere through its narrow streets and alleys paved with boulders from the nearby river, often re-used stonework and wood-framed upper-stories. Many houses date back to the 14th century and two of the fortified entrance gates to the bourg have been preserved. Walk away from the old centre in the direction of the river and discover a part of the village that faces the river, with the Chappelle des Pénitants overlooking the river. A walled passage brings you to a causeway across the river with a dedicated fish passage to allow wild salmon to swim upstream. The opposite bank provides the best vistas of the village.
Historic battlesite
Across the countryside you will find abandoned telephone-boxes transferred into book exchange cabinets. In one of those we came across a 2003 reprint of a 1875 Géographie du Département de la Corrèze 1. And reading through chanced upon a reference to ‘la sanglante bataille d’Estresses’ in the history chapter.
‘Pépin, having revolted in 850, was defeated by Charles, who, in 853, had him imprisoned in Senlis. The Normans, taking advantage of these troubles, invaded the country, which they pillaged and burned. Raoul de Bourgogne attacked them and defeated them at the bloody battle of Estresses, near Beaulieu’.
A search for the battle of Estresses, revealed it took place ‘just under the walls of Beaulieu’ in a blogpost containing a picture of a ‘texte extrait du cartulaire de Beaulieu’ I have not been able to verify2;
‘Bands of Normans had already traveled through Limousin in 846; They made new incursions there in 866 and 889, during which a large number of towns, villages and monasteries were invaded, killed and destroyed. Did our abbey suffer from their attacks?
It is to be believed that she escaped such a disaster, because the chroniclers would not have failed to mention her, and we would undoubtedly find some trace of it in her Cartulary. However, it seems that, in the last invasion of these bold adventurers, the danger was imminent, and that they suffered, a short distance from its walls, in the plain of Dextresses, Destricios, located on the left bank of the Dordogne’.
On the website of the Société d'histoire et d'archéologie de Bretagne3 I found the following context:
‘When in 924 the country of Bayeux was given to Rollo by King Raoul, it was found that all the shores of Gaul from the mouth of the Loire to the mouth of the Seine were in the possession of the pirates. Scandinavians. But, each time they wanted to go beyond the limits that the Franks had assigned to them, they suffered bitter defeats. In 923, twelve thousand of them perished during an incursion into Aquitaine and Auvergne; in 925, another failure following another incursion into Burgundy; in 930, finally, the king of the Franks, Raoul, almost entirely annihilated their army which had just ravaged Limousin.
This great battle of the year 930, which was fought, it is believed, near the village of Estresse, in Correze, dealt a significant blow to the military power of the Normans of the Loire; since then, they no longer made any major expeditions outside Brittany’.
We will come back to the ravages of the Normans and the defense works put in place when we explore the Vézère valley, and la Roque Saint-Christophe.
This story continues here: La Vicomté de Turenne (IV)
‘Pépin, having revolted in 850, was defeated by Charles, who, in 853, had him imprisoned in Senlis. The Normans, taking advantage of these troubles, invaded the country, which they pillaged and burned. Raoul de Bourgogne attacked them and defeated them at the bloody battle of Estresses, near Beaulieu’.
Joanne A. 1875. Géographie du Département de la Corrèze, Avec une carte coloriée et de l’itinéraire général de la France. Librairie Hachette et Cie.
‘Des bandes de Normands avaient deja parcouru le Limousin en 846; elles y frent, en 866 et 889, de nouvelles incusions, pendant lesquelles un grand nombre de villes, bourgades et monesteres furent envahis, illes et detruits. Notre abbaye souffrit-elle de leurs attaintes?
Il est a croire qu’elle echappa a un tel desastre, car les choniqueurs n’auraient pas manque de la mentionner, et l’on en trouverait sans doutequelque trace dans son Cartulaire. Il parait toutefois que, dans la derniere invasion de ces hardis aventuriers, le danger fut imminent, et que’ils subirent, a peu de distance de ses murs, dans la plaine de Dextresses, Destricios, situee sur la rive gauche de la Dordogne’.
As accessed through the blog Carnets d’ICI.
Merlet F., 1924. La victoire de Cancale remportée par les Bretons sur les Normands en l'année 931. B1, p.26-40. As accessed through the Société d'histoire et d'archéologie de Bretagne website.