Bellevigne

Already occupied during Antiquity when a Roman road crossed it, the territory of Bellevigne was then marked by the Merovingian presence. In the Middle Ages, small seigneuries develop and parishes are formed around Romanesque churches. A prosperous nobility is constituted by wine production and trade via the Paris-Bordeaux axis under the Ancien Régime and in the 19th century. It remains of this history of interesting testimonies in term of heritage, to discover during a circuit which starts with Malaville by the church Saint-Saturnin. Built in the 12th century, it was renovated in the 15th and 16th centuries. The date of 1511 is visible on the facade which includes beautiful sculptures depicting characters (hunting scenes, knight taming a wild beast...). Note also the staircase and cast iron cross decorating the square of the building, protected as historical monuments.

Several noble houses, seats of small seigneuries, called "lodgings" in the region, have also been preserved but reworked (La Rivière, Richement).

On the village of Éraville, the church of St. Peter is built in the twelfth and restored in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The richly decorated capitals of the 12th century (foliage, interlacing, pearls, diamond points...) are always visible. There is also a beautiful example of a steeple-wall. The church has been classified since 1965. In the village and its surroundings, farms of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries have defied time.

At the village of Nonaville, crossroads of communication between Paris and Bordeaux, a post office and a market are active since the Old Regime and the nineteenth century. The Saint-Saturnin church was built in the 13th century and restored in the 15th century. The vault was covered with paneling in 1877, but original vaulted arches remain partially visible.

See also, the former coaching inn built in the seventeenth century, under Louis XIII, the house and the gate having been restored in the nineteenth, and the manor of Pérot (tower of the sixteenth) and Balzac (seventeenth), albeit remodeled to Nineteenth, and 1700s farms dotting farmland and wine.

In Touzac, the parish church dedicated to Saint-Pierre and Saint-Laurent dates to its oldest parts of the twelfth century. Its facade is listed, but the building was rebuilt and restored several times between the sixteenth and nineteenth century. Note however that the nave of the church is vaulted cradle and a dome on pendants gives it all its charm.

Moreover, on this village, the old fortified house of Puy de Neuville has preserved old elements such as an entrance gatehouse and a remodeled home still having mullioned windows of the sixteenth century. A vaulted hall and loopholes still bear witness of the defensive and military functions possessed by the Domaine de la Voûte, rebuilt in the 19th century, and the Logis de la Peigerie, finally mentioned in the 16th century, has been reworked several times but retains a noble aspect.

Finally, in Viville, the church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste belonged to a commandery of Templiers established since the twelfth century. The building has been restored, but still features capitals of the twelfth century ornamented with style (diamond points, wolf teeth, checkers and leaves, animals). In the same village, some houses have preserved elements of the sixteenth and eighteenth century...

This patrimonial and historical panorama carried out, places then with the leisure "nature" and cultural.

A visit is thus required to the gardens of Chaigne, Touzac, an old vineyard that belonged to a rich merchant of Angoulême, enjoying, like the whole territory, a mild and sunny ocean climate but subject in the off-season to frequent rains. Owned by a brand of Cognac, the park is now converted into gardens. Several plots compose it: French garden, orchard-garden with square dedicated to aromatic herbs, water way with basins, and theater of greenery. This site, designed with care to reconcile aesthetics and development of plantations, labeled Jardin Remarkable, is rich in various species (boxwood, American walnut, tulip tree, hackberry, arbutus, rose garden...). Open Monday to Friday except Wednesday from May 15 to September 30 and the second or third weekend of the month. Free visit or commented. Price 5 or 6 euros. Information on +33 5 45 61 12 87.

On Touzac still, the center of contemporary art Chabram is housed since 2013 in the old school of the village. Creative workshops and exhibitions are offered throughout the year. Open on weekends for exhibitions and by appointment for groups. Free entry. Information on +33 5 45 91 63 89.

Hiking fans are not left out. Thematic courses have been designed and marked on each of the old villages of the new town: the circuit of Gallo-Roman paths (8.5 km) in Éraville, the circuit of fountains (10.4 km) in Malaville, the circuit of the Né Valley (9,7 km) to Nonaville, the donkey path circuit (5,5 km) to Viville and Touzac, the circuit of the big fairy (9,1 km) and that of the Pierres et Vignes (9,7 km). Information on +33 5 45 97 08 14.

Other courses can be envisaged including for example tasting breaks or cellar visits at producers of cognac or pineau. Maps and information on +33 5 45 97 13 32 or +33 5 45 82 10 71.

Finally, the born is suitable for fishing. Contact the local association for regulations at +33 5 45 69 33 91.

At the end of June, the fire of Saint-Jean at Malaville.

In mid-September, colorful and festive race with obstacles to Nonaville (animations are planned before, during and after the event, colored clouds of natural powder being dispersed on the athletes).