Last Sunday, as the 22C weather forecast sounded pretty good for autumn, we took a drive to Availles-Limouzine, a town in the Vienne department of France (bordering on the Charente), home to about 1300 people and built on a bank of the beautiful Vienne river.
The spot was successively occupied from the earliest times by the Goths, Romans, Gauls and Francs, but at the beginning of the 11th century, the town was mentioned in archives as Viconia Avalia, developing on a salt route which ran inland from the coast, and at what had become an important river crossing - perhaps a ford. Availles was a stop-over point on the route and markets were held here, but the originally beautiful, but dilapidated, covered market building in the town square was demolished in the 1920s.(see later!). The town was fortified during the Middle Ages and in the 12th century, a castle was built to protect the wooden bridge which had been built across the river. At least two gates provided access through the town walls; the restored Cavalry gate, on the side away from the river and the River gate, as you would imagine(!), being next to the river on the opposite side, still survive.
The spot was successively occupied from the earliest times by the Goths, Romans, Gauls and Francs, but at the beginning of the 11th century, the town was mentioned in archives as Viconia Avalia, developing on a salt route which ran inland from the coast, and at what had become an important river crossing - perhaps a ford. Availles was a stop-over point on the route and markets were held here, but the originally beautiful, but dilapidated, covered market building in the town square was demolished in the 1920s.(see later!). The town was fortified during the Middle Ages and in the 12th century, a castle was built to protect the wooden bridge which had been built across the river. At least two gates provided access through the town walls; the restored Cavalry gate, on the side away from the river and the River gate, as you would imagine(!), being next to the river on the opposite side, still survive.
The Cavalry gate. One can still see grooves in the stonework where the portcullis slid up and down!
The River gateway gave access to the previously mentioned bridge, which was destroyed in 1350, along with a lot of the town, by fighting during the 100 Years War (1337-1453).
Circular riverside tower on the outside wall of the fortifications.
Up until as recently as 1950, the banks of the Vienne were visited by a mixture of washerwomen and sand gatherers. The first came to wash their linen, before carrying it home in barrows and the second came to dredge sand from the banks, for use later in construction of the buildings. But not at the same time, presumably!
During the long period when there was no bridge, people used to cross the river by ferry. It was first mentioned in 1657 and was still there in 1750, as a map confirms its existence. In 1839 a suspension bridge was opened, but this proved to be inadequate as it required too much maintenance! Thus, in 1892, a metal bridge supported on two stone pillars and designed by the famous Eiffel company, was constructed. The increases in traffic volumes eventually spelt an end to what was called "a work of art", and in 1957 the present concrete bridge was built.
In the 17th century, the house on the left became known as 'the domain of the river'. I somehow missed taking a photo of it, as we spent time looking for the covered market, previously referred to. This is a sketch of what it looked like, and certainly the character of the market square has been completely altered, for the worse, by its disappearance.
Right opposite where the covered market stood, is the Mairie.
This house now stands on the site of the castle, which fell into ruin, due to the effects of first, the Hundred Years' War and later, the Wars of Religion in the latter half of the 16th century.
A dear little door which is not high enough for either of us to have walked through without bending quite low, but obviously adequate for the people of those early times.
A typical street scene. Most of the houses have been well restored.
Water pumps seem to be a feature of the town.......
Walking up the quite steep hill to the Church of Saint Martin.
The church of Saint Martin first appeared in texts in 1090. It belonged to the Abbey of St Cyprien in Poitiers and was largely reconstructed in the 15th century after almost total destruction in the 100 Years' War. The church has also received further, more recent restoration in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The stained glass windows were installed in 1867 and are signed by the Gueritault brothers from Poitiers, a large town not far to the north-west.
The restful, tree lined sand square outside the church is much used by players of petanque/boules! This cast iron cross on one side of it dates from the 19th century. It is set on a stone base and depicts a snake encircling an amphora above a lower section showing a lacrimosa with two tears clearly visible.
Near the church at the top of the hill is another water pump, so water pressure is obviously sufficient somehow, even up here!
A close up of the ornate cast iron spout.
Yet another pump, this one nearer the centre of town.
If you should be interested in buying property in this lovely town, there were quite a number of houses for sale, this one being the largest that we saw! The tourist office was unfortunately closed when we visited, but even without any background information, one could spend a very pleasant hour or so looking around this well kept hidden gem of a town.
Also see my daily diary HERE
