The Lussacois, from Prehistory to the present day

Depart from the town of Lussac-les-Châteaux, latitude 46.4023900 (N 46° 24’ 9”), longitude 0.7247400 (E 0° 43’ 29”)

The 12th century Saint-Romain church has a classified campanile. Today we see inside, a carved plate Merovingian era and the statue of St. Sylvain (XV).

The old Forges de Goberté (name of the stream) ran from the 17th to the 19th century. We can see the beautiful house of the master of ironworks and its park with pond (private properties).

A little further on you can leave the car and take the Goberté trail on the right (opposite the sign).
This path leads to an old lime kiln and below to a fountain that enlarges the Goberté.

This building was built in 2001 by the insertion teams of Pays Montmorillonnais with the help of the old Bouresse to show how these buildings used to be used as shelters for equipment or storage places.

The Notre-Dame de Bouresse church was built in the 11th century and the facade was redone in 1873. Inside there is the pavement behind the altar with a drawing of bees recalling the miracle of Saint Rita whose church has a icon. To see also a madonna to the child of the seventeenth century. In front of the church there is a modern statue of the Virgin and at the crossroads of the ancient buildings (13th, 14th century) vestiges of a medieval market hall.

You see on your right the ruins of the Rigaudière castle of the fifteenth and sixteenth century.

This recently restored chapel was built to house a stone in which Saint Radegonde would have left his foot in the 6th century. (The key can be requested from the Town Hall of Verrières).

A tricolor post on your left informs you of the presence of the Monument de la Couarde commemorating a tragic event. A few meters took place on July 3, 1944 a fight between a German battalion and an English commando S.A.S.
(7 FFIs were killed, 34 English and 1 American taken prisoner were later shot in the forest of Saint Sauvant).

Leave the car up to the church. And walk down the stairs, along the wall, cross the road and take the path down to the stream.
A recent plaque by Saint Braillard replaces the old one that gave its name to the bridge over the Dive. The children were taken there to prevent them from crying at night. In the north is a copper pipe extending the chimney of an old tannery and in the south a former wash house.

This castle also called "Verrières" located in the town of Lhommaizé was built from 1764 to 1768 by Jean-Baptiste Victor de Rochechouart, Duke of Mortemart. The park is closed with a magnificent grid, classified, iron, forged on the spot. We note an R, an M and a V intertwined at the top surmounted by the ducal crown. A forge was established nearby in 1595, it will operate until 1886. It is replaced by an alcohol distillery (ruins next to the castle) which is replaced in turn by a power plant in 1901. It supplied Lhommaizé and Verrières well before the official electrification.

park on the square, walk to the small road on the left and go down to the river.
To see the wash house and the small bridge on the Dive. Come back and go to church. Built in 1870-1871 by Louis Evariste Robert de Beauchamp, owner of the Château de la Forge. There is a baptismal font from the 12th century, a 17th century painting, 2 statues from the 18th century. and magnificent stained glass windows.

You see the Nuclear Power Plant in service since 1997. It consists of 2 PWR nuclear reactors and precursor of the European pressurized reactor project, designated as "N4 level", of 1495 megawatts each. The plant uses Vienna water for cooling.

Park on the square next to the church.
Follow the signs to go to the Necropolis. The cemetery of Civaux is the part, today visible, of a huge Merovingian necropolis with thousands of sarcophagi. It contains the ruins of an old chapel, St. Catherine, the fifteenth and sixteenth century.When returning to the church you will walk along a street that has some old houses

The excavation site, along the church, shows a baptismal font from the 6th and 7th centuries.
The 12th century church of St. Gervais and Saint Protais. has a Merovingian choir, and original capitals. It is one of the oldest churches in France.
The museum facing the entrance to the church presents artefacts discovered during archaeological excavations on Civaux and the Vienne Valley

On your left the oldest dates from the 13th century. and on your right the most recent dates from the 19th century. They are dedicated to Saint Sylvain. They are now private properties but the owner of the oldest will be happy to show you if he is present.

Hikes & walks in Lussac-les-Châteaux