The floral park of Mansle open from 29 May to 30 September, The ephemeral gardens of Saint-Fraigne. open from June to October, The garden of the senses in Montjean. free visit from 15 June to 15 September, The medieval monastic garden of Tusson, visit from the end of March to the end of November, The gardens of Argentor in Nanteuil-en-vallée open all year round, Saint-Groux poacher's village built in a meander of the Charente river on a large peninsula, kingdom of the nature and fishing lovers. To see: the house of the stream of islands and the poacher with its audiovisual space and its thematic exhibitions, fishery with its orchard and the site of the shades in edge of the river. Villognon, the church with its portal framed by two bas-reliefs, to the north the enthronement of Saint Nicolas, patron saint of the church, and to the south Saint Michel slaying the dragon. Bayers, the fully restored castle, seat of an important seigniory which, since the 12th century, belonged to the La Rochefoucauld family. The castle was responsible for guarding the ford on the Charente. Lichères, the Romanesque church of Saint Denis, a former priory founded in the 12th century by the Benedictines of Charroux. Mouton, the village crossed by the river Son-Sonnette with its church Saint-Martial, its wash house and its houses with balet.Chenon, the church Notre Dame.Moutonneau, the fords and footbridges towards the islands.The villages of Saint-Front, Saint Sulpice, Couture and Ventouse for their Romanesque churches.Fontenille for the dolmens close to the departmental road 61. Lonnes, the restored hamlet of Petit Fayolle with its 18th century buildings.Sainte Colombe, the church with its facade sculpted with bas-reliefs depicting symbols of the evangelists and scenes from the story of Colombe, the virgin martyred in Sens in the 3rd century.Saint-Amant de Bonnieure, the church with its Romanesque apse and the statue of a virgin and child from the 16th century, the 14th century castle which has become the dwelling. Saint-Angeau, the village with its Romanesque church and its museum of clogs, prams and old lace, the neolithic necropolis of La Boixe, in the forest, the restored dolmen from the 4th millennium BC. A path in the heart of the Boixe forest, a sacred place long before Christianity, which shelters Neolithic remains in a biological animal and plant area of the utmost importance.Â
The floral park of Mansle open from 29 May to 30 September, The ephemeral gardens of Saint-Fraigne. open from June to October, The garden of the senses in Montjean. free visit from 15 June to 15 September, The medieval monastic garden of Tusson, visit from the end of March to the end of November, The gardens of Argentor in Nanteuil-en-vallée open all year round, Saint-Groux poacher's village built in a meander of the Charente river on a large peninsula, kingdom of the nature and fishing lovers. To see: the house of the stream of islands and the poacher with its audiovisual space and its thematic exhibitions, fishery with its orchard and the site of the shades in edge of the river. Villognon, the church with its portal framed by two bas-reliefs, to the north the enthronement of Saint Nicolas, patron saint of the church, and to the south Saint Michel slaying the dragon. Bayers, the fully restored castle, seat of an important seigniory which, since the 12th century, belonged to the La Rochefoucauld family. The castle was responsible for guarding the ford on the Charente. Lichères, the Romanesque church of Saint Denis, a former priory founded in the 12th century by the Benedictines of Charroux. Mouton, the village crossed by the river Son-Aussac-Vadalle, in the clearing of Puy-merle former place of pilgrimage, fairs then frairies, the remains of an old convent.Maine-de-Boixe, the chapel of the Templars. Nanclars, a former village of peddlers, the church of Saint Michel from the 12th century, the wash houses.Saint-Amant-de-Boixe, the abbey church from the 12th and 15th centuries, one of the best preserved in the Charente, is the largest in the department after the Cathedral of Angoulême. The Romanesque abbey was transferred in the 11th century to its present location when the Taillefer counts of Angoulême, protectors of the monks of the abbey, built the castle of Montignac, and you can also see the cloister. Montignac is a town that spreads out in a hemicycle on a hillside facing the valley. The first castle built by Guillaume II Taiffer was rebuilt by Count Vulgrin II Taillefer in the 12th century. See the fortified gateway and the portcullis from the 13th century, the 12th century keep which houses exhibitions.Xambes, the Romanesque church of Notre-Dame with its well of miracles.Villejoubert, the motte d'Andone, occupied from the 7th century BC to the Gallo-Roman period, then from 950 to 1028 by the Counts of Angoulême and finally completely abandoned in favour of Montignac. Tusson and the remains of the fontevrist priory, the gothic church dedicated to Santiago de Compostela and its contemporary wall paintings, the flowery circuit and the thematic gardens, medieval monastic garden, Marguerite d'Angoulême's home. Embourie, the Gallo-Roman villa, a site which is the subject of regular archaeological interventions. Excavations have yielded numerous movable remains, wall paintings, ceramics, coins, jewellery and sculpted architectural elements. These objects can be seen in an exhibition entitled "the country of Villefagnan in Gallo-Roman times". An exhibition proposed in the heart of the village of Embourie from July 1st to August 31st except on Wednesdays.Ruffec, and the church of Saint-André de Ruffec from the 12th and 15th centuries.Condac, the relaxation and leisure area on the site of Réjallant on the banks of the Charente with its archipelago of islands linked by footbridges, the mill between wooded cliffs and wet meadows dominated by the manor. Bernac, at Breuil-au-Vigier, the 18th century octagonal dovecoteBarro, the Touches site with its view of the meandering Charente; the hamlets of Aigue pendantes and Cuchet.Nanteuil-en-Vallée and its Romanesque Abbey of the Order of Saint Benoit, Gothic church, and the arboretum... In the Saint Jean-Baptiste square, the half-timbered houses, the exhibition of Gallo-Roman remains, in the 13th-15th century church, the choir stalls from the abbey, the painted stone panel from the 15th century representing the motif of the Trinity, the holy water font dug out of a capital of the 13th century cloister, the floor in the heart of a maiden around the baptismal font, the fairground square, the washhouse. Rue de la Folatière, the Arboretum created by BUREAU, a landscape architect from Charente between 1930 and 1940. The Argentor gardens, flower beds and waterfall of the arboretum, water features and woven wicker labyrinth of the aquatic garden.Â
Theil-Rabier and La Magdeleine, the Romanesque churches of Sainte-Radegonde and Sainte Madeleine. The Couradeaux site, a wooded plateau where Mediterranean fauna and flora thrive, the Couradeaux wood which offers a good moment of relaxation, leisure and discovery to hikers (interpretation circuit - on the tracks of the wolf, Courcôme, to discover the church Notre-Dame and its facade of the XIIth century, its heads of fantestic animals on the capitals, the square bell-tower with a floor and the chevet covered in slates. Inside the church is a 13th century statue of the Virgin and Child. In the cemetery, the chapel with its slate roof and the restored wall paintings representing a trompe-l'oeil altarpiece. In Raix, the Romanesque church of Saint-Barthélemy with its Poitevin cornice facade, nearby the dwelling and its French garden. La Rochefoucauld, and its castle, the birthplace of a famous family. Seven centuries of history and architecture. It is the most prestigious castle in the Charente but there are other residences to discover: The castle of Rochebrune in Etagnac, the castle of Balzac, the medieval castle of Peyras in Roumazières-Loubert or the castle of Chesnel in Cherves-Richemont....Angoulême, a city of art and history, a flowery city where it is good to stroll and have lunch in the districts of the old Angoulême, pedestrian districts sheltered by the ramparts of the upper city. Angoulême is home to the Centre National de la Bande Dessinée et de l'Image (National Centre for Comic Strips and Images), which was created in the wake of the international comic strip festival held in the city every year. Discover the Nil paper museum workshop, the Verger de Puymoyen paper mill, the Fleurac Mill paper museum in Nersac and the Fine Arts museum. Discovery of Angoulême and guided tours from June to September. A must-see is the Cathedral of Saint Peter which illustrates the Ascension and the Last Judgement. Cognac and the Charente countryside, visit the cellars, discover and taste* At Cailletières, near Rouillac and its famous monthly fair on the 27th, near the Château de Gourville and the Gallo-Roman site of Les Bouchauds: Cognac Guy BONNAUD les Cailletières 16170 Gourville Telephone: 05 45 21 73 30