Périgueux

March 7, 2008

Périgueux , city (2005 pop. 40,848), capital of Dordogne dept., SW France

Founded more than 2,000 years ago, Périgueux, préfecture or capital city of the Dordogne, is a gracious blend of ancient and modern.

The history of the city of Périgueux began when four Celtic tribes merged to become the Petrucores. They settled on the hills overlooking the river (l’Isle) until they were overpowered by the Romans.
The Gallo‑Roman remains show how magnificent the town would have been in the 1st and 2nd centuries, the Romans having built in the valley Vesunna, an imposing city (between 15 and 20000 inhabitants), which, in the 3rd century, was enclosed by a defensive surrounding wall.
In the 4th century, Vesunna which was but a small town was named after its people “Civitas Petrocoriorum”. The town was no longer prosperous during the Dark Ages. In the 9th century, it withstood the attacks of the Normans several times thanks to its thick defensive surrounding wall.
From the 10th century on, the birth of another town gave new impetus to the valley. As a matter of fact, a chapel and a monastery were built outside the walls were the tomb of the apostle of the Périgord, whose name was Saint-Front, had been erected and which attracted a lot of pilgrims.

Merchants, artisans who wanted to get rich traded with the clerics and travellers and settled down nearby. This population gave birth to the “Bourg du Puy Saint-Front”. In the 13th century, the new town expanded and was surrounded by a wall in a U-shape, a 1.6 km long with 28 towers and 12 gates.
In 1240, in the reign of Saint-Louis, the City and the “Bourg” met and formed one city called Périgueux. For centuries, Périgueux, protected by its defensive wall, remained unchanged. But from the 18th century on, the city began developing. Beyond the wall a modern city appeared and in 1790 it became the “préfecture” of the “département de la Dordogne”.
In the 19th century, the number of inhabitants increased a lot and the city spread along the river Isle as it used to be in the 2nd century. But it is only when the rail went through Périgueux in 1856 that the city really expanded (5700 inhabitants in 1801, 13000 inhabitants in 1850, 31300 in 1890).

The main shopping precinct is a warren of cobbled alleys lined with boutiques, summer buskers and magnificent Renaissance houses, perhaps the most spectacularly ornate being the Maison du Pâtissier on the corner of the Place Saint-Louis. This pedestrian area, with its shady squares and café terraces, is a marvellous venue for open air events like the regular summer night markets, the international mime festival, Mimos, or the free evening jazz concerts, Macadam Jazz, in July and August, as well as more traditional events such as the marché au gras (fattened duck and goose products) during the winter months.

The 18th-century – now administrative – part of the city around the Place Tourny is largely built in white stone, and the saltiest events here are the frequent pétanque (local bowls) tournaments which occupy the elderly – and a large part of precious parking space on the Tourny carpark.
Modern architecture includes the splendid new Archives, opposite the Tour Mataguerre, the Bourse du Travail and the greenhouse-like Lycée Jay-de-Beaufort, successfully adjoining the beautiful Renaissance ruins of the Château Barrière. Near here are the Roman Jardins des Arènes, the entrances to the arena a gloomy reminder of gladiators’ torments. Now it is a landscaped park, a shady haven from the streets, with a children’s paddling pool and playground.

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Limeuil

December 15, 2007

At the confluence of the Dordogne and Vezere Rivers, Limeuil offers canoeing and a river beach, and a pretty little village that is well worth exploring.

The village is still partly surrounded by its original fortified walls, and is another of the ‘picture postcard pretty’ villages of the Dordogne, with cobbled streets winding between honey-coloured houses and pretty gardens.

Despite its picturesque location it is not usually completely overrun with tourists in the way that some places are, and the Parc Limeuil at the top of the town, while not spectacular as a park, has some fine views and is usually quiet.

A very pleasant place to escape the crowds.

A short stroll around the village gives a taste of the diversity on offer; at the foot of the two magnificent bridges, built in 1891, a sandy beach leads down into the clear water. A little further along, the 15th century port entrance which leads up to an extremely steep street is carved with the water levels reached during the great floods.
Getting to the top of the village is hard, but rewarding, work - take the time to study the medieval architecture on the way up. At the Place des Fossés, the château gardens provide a wonderful view over the river confluence, the rooftops and terraced gardens. The black Virgin Mary in St Catherine’s Church was the patron saint of the river traders.

The visitor can go from the blacksmith, to the glass-blower. Limeuil enjoys many sporting activities including canoeing, horse riding and mountain-biking. The holiday-maker will find plenty of welcoming hotels, restaurants and campsites.

Evidence of the period when Aquitaine was English can be found on the Bugue road leading out of the village: St Martin’s Chapel was built in 1194 to expiate the murder of the Archbishop of Canterbury, St Thomas à Becket

A Brief History

The site of Limeuil has been lived on since prehistoric times (various artefacts dating from approximately 10,000 BC have been found). Limeuil, listed as « One of the Most Beautiful Villages of France », is essentially a medieval village as the three fortified gateways and ruins of the castle and ramparts testify.

What to See

On the edge of the village is a museum garden where different plants and methods of cultivation take the visitor a journey through time from the Stone Age to the Renaissance period.
The natural beauty spot formed by the bend in the river offers a superb view.

Read more

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Sarlat - Capital of the Périgord Noir

November 4, 2007

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Sarlat the geographical centre of Périgord-Quercy, is by far the most important tourist site in the region Over a million visitors discover or re discover this medieval jewel every year. This town of l0,000 inhabitants today occupies top spot in terms of tourists and culture. Although this is basically a cultural town, industry is also represented, mainly by food processing firms, many of which produce foie gras. This foie gras, one of the most highly rated in France has contributed to the great culinary reputation of the Périgord in general and the town in particular.

Sarlat

Although it has one of the largest medieval urban areas (13th to 16th centuries) in the world, Sarlat cannot claim a very distant past. The initial Sarlat abbey was most probably founded between 820 and 840 AD by Duke Pepin of Aquitaine. Saint Bernard stopped off in Sarlat in 1147 during his journey through the South of France to spread the gospel to the many Cathars. The plague was predominant at the time. He gave the sick consecrated bread to eat and healed them. This event, this miracle even was commemorated by the building of the strange graveyard lantern which, still today, remains one of the towns symbols.

Lost in the heart of the distant Périgord, Sarlat could have sunk into oblivion if it was not for the Malraux Act of 4th August 1962. Perhaps the minister of culture (Andre Malraux) recalled having taken to the macquis (The name given to some French Resistance groups during World War Two) in the heart of the Sarlat woodlands, when he signed the act of renovation and restoration. The works carried out from 1964 onward have revealed a veritable treasure trove of Medieval and Renaissance art to the public. Tourists and film directors then took charge of bringing this corner of the Earth “which is the closest things to heaven” according to Henry Miller, to the attention of the whole world. The 1978 film version of “Les Miserable” was filmed extensively in Sarlat, but also in nearby Domme, with the stunning Beynac Castle standing in for the famous Toulon Jail. Sarlat’s wonderful architecture and medieval style buildings and stone roofs have made a backdrop for a score of other top motion pictures since, which has added to it’s fame an it’s fortune.

Sarlat

A warren of alleyways, virtually unchanged since the middle ages, lined with warm ochre stone houses, each with its own distinctive facade and ornately sculptured window embrasures, set off by the stone roofs and turrets, make Sarlat a must for any tourist visiting the Dordogne. Sarlat’s Saturday market is excellent, teaming with life, an unforgetable experience from the street artists that throng there, to the wonderful fresh local produce. Sarlat comes to life in summer with its Drama Festival and Film Festival as well as non-stop street shows in the old quarter. Sarlat is an artists paradise with many small galeries including the famous “Herdin”, student of Salvador Dali. Out of season there is also a well packed programme of cultural events, concerts, drama, films (often in the original language), a visit at Christmas is like stepping into a Fairy Tale, with piped christmas carols and Santas scaling buildings everywhere, there truly is something for everyone.

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Les Eyzies de Tayac

November 1, 2007

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is commonplace for Les Eyzies to be introduced as the world’s prehistoric capital and the numerous painted caves and, particularly, the proliferation of rock shelters only confirm this notion. The most varied prehistoric, and historic, styles and periods are represented, making Les Eyzies the archetypal town for travelling through the past. This vast, motionless promenade will enable us to appreciate more thoroughly the passing of prehistoric time. From La Micoque to Laugerie-Basse. from 300,000 to 5000 years B.C., prehistory at Les Eyzies lasted sixty times longer than history and one hundred and fifty times longer than the Christian era.
Even if you only have a passing interest in prehistoric times, Les Eyzies would be worth a visit. if only for its site. At the confluence of the Vezere and the Beune. the little village. out of which rises an old castle converted into a museum. clings to the bottom of tall cliffs containing shelters, caves and troglodyte dwellings. crowned with green oaks and juniper trees. Having crossed the Vezere. a little road which winds between the river and the rocks follows the prehistoric “Royal road” an unimaginable succession of caves and shelters in an impressive framework of cliffs.

The chalk uplands which surround Les Eyzies are rich in flint, crisss-crossed with dozens of secret clefts and valleys, dominated by cliffs with hidden caves made fine hunting country for prehistoric man. Solid natural materials abound for making weapons and tools, and the shelter of the rock formations made the Périgord a perfect place to live. 100,000 years ago neanderthal man walked the valley of the Dordogne and left sufficient remains to make it a focal point of prehistory. Although he was named after the small valley in Germany where, in 1856, bines were found that fit his description, it was at Le Moustier, near Les Eyzies, that archaeologists first catalogued his weapons and tools.
 The oldest human skeletal remains found in the Dordogne are of Neanderthal Man. The Moustier site yielded three complete skeletons another was found at Le Rigourdou, and at La Ferrassie, near Le Bugue, seven were unearthed, including some young children’s. These skeletons reveal that Neanderthal Man rarely lived to the age of thirty, and had Sophisticated burial rites involving funeral ceremonies. In some cases. the bodies were placed in dug graves and covered with earth, stones or slabs. Such respect for the dead must surely indicate that Neanderthal Man was capable of Philosophical reflection and perhaps a belief in an after life.

In March 1868, the geologist Louis Lartet, financed by Henry Christy, discovered the first five skeletons of Cro-Magnons, the earliest known examples of Homo sapiens sapiens, in the Cro-Magnon rock shelter at Les Eyzies-de-Tayac. These skeletons included a fetus, and the skulls found were remarkably modern-looking and much rounder than the earlier Neanderthal.

The Dordogne is split into four areas: the Périgord Vert (green), the Périgord Blanc (white), the Périgord Pourpre (purple), and the Périgord Noir (black). Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil lies in the Périgord Noir area.

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