Saint Jean de Côle – the flower village

Somewhere in the green expanse of Périgord, not far from the town of Brantôme and the beautiful stalactite caves of Villars, hides a sweet little village that has rightfully earned the title of “One of the most beautiful villages in France"She told me about this village a while ago." Rotem Bar And I arrived there with her on May 7, during the Flower Festival. I fell in love with it immediately and now it's your turn to fall in love with it too...

So let's go back to the Middle Ages, where the village's story begins, and let's get started!

The history of Saint-Jean-de-Cole

This charming village, named after the Côle River that runs through it, has existed for nearly 1,000 years. The village began as a small monastery, founded in 1083 by Raymond de Thiviers, bishop of Périgueux, the provincial capital.

The monastery was joined, relatively soon after, by a castle, created to protect the monks and named Chateau de la Marthonie. These two impressive buildings have developed over the years, and are the village's major attractions.

However, if you thought the village became peaceful and flourishing after the end of the Hundred Years' War, you are wrong. During the Wars of Religion (1560-1598), the village became a battlefield between Catholics and Protestants, and during French Revolution The monastery was dispersed and a very large part of its books were burned.

To the delight of the villagers, this was the last drama that Saint-Jean-de-Col experienced (before my visit of course 🙂 ) and since then nothing special has happened there. And the truth? It has only done the village good. The reason for this is that, since the village has not developed, most of the ancient houses have remained in place and no modern houses have been built in their place. Therefore, visiting this village will really feel like a journey through time to days of pastoral peace and simplicity (which did not really happen, but let's continue to enjoy this sweet illusion).

What to see in Saint-Jean-de-Cole

Chateau de la Marthonie

This castle was created to protect the village that developed around the monastery, and it was badly damaged during the Hundred Years' War. During the 100th and 15th centuries, the castle was rebuilt and tall, impressive towers were added. About a century later, another wing was added called the “Renaissance Wing” (although the Renaissance actually took place in the 16th century), and it looks much less severe than the other wings and towers.

Church of John the Baptist

This is a very old church (construction began in the late 11th century) and is built in the Byzantine style. This is a very rare style in the north. FranceHowever, in Périgord you can find several examples of churches of this type, and this is one of the most distinctive and beautiful of them.

One of the first things that will catch your eye are the 75 small figurines scattered throughout the church. These figurines are called modillions and come in a variety of strange shapes, such as grotesque faces, animals, and the seven deadly sins, for which the church sentences death.

If you look up, you will see a large circle covered with a wooden ceiling. The circle shows us that there used to be a stone dome here, about 12 meters in diameter. However, this dome collapsed during the Hundred Years' War and collapsed again in 100 and 1787. Eventually, the church administrators decided that they had tried enough, so today you see a wooden lattice that they put in place.

And finally, not far from the entrance to the church, at the bottom of the wall to your right, you will find something interesting. This is a temporary tomb, built during the Middle Ages, when infant mortality was particularly high. Babies who died before their baptism were placed in this tomb, and because of its proximity to the wall, the tomb would fill with rainwater. As a result, the baby was “baptized” and its body could be moved to a “regular” grave…

The old bridge and the water station

The bridge was built in the 15th century and has two abutments that protect it from flooding by pushing forward branches and other things that could block the flow of water. In the past, this was the main bridge because this was where goods entering the village passed.

During the 19th century, a new bridge was built and the old bridge was closed. However, this event only did it good (in terms of tourism), as it has now become a romantic place with a lovely view of the river.

As you stand on the bridge, notice that to your right is a water wheel. Its purpose was to power a flour mill and it was built by the monks of the nearby monastery.

Abbey of Saint-Jean-de-Col

As mentioned, the monastery was built in the late 11th and early 12th centuries and was home to 16 monks who followed the path of Saint Augustine. The old monastery did not survive the upheavals of the Hundred Years' War and was destroyed, but was rebuilt in the 15th century. This monastery, like many others, was closed during the French Revolution and the last three monks who lived there were evacuated.

The monastery is built in two parts. The right part is a remnant of the 15th century structure and contains a cloister (an enclosed courtyard where the monks used to rest) and a gallery that leads to the cells where the monks slept. To the left of the cloister you will find additional buildings from the 17th century.

Village streets

A little anecdote about the houses: The ground floor was always used as a shop, while the people lived on the second floor. The reason for this is that if the stream overflowed its banks, the residents could escape to their rooms, which were located in a high and protected place.

Where is recommended to eat?

I didn't get to eat in the village itself, because everything was full of tourists (I came, as mentioned, during the flower festival), so we went to a tiny restaurant in Villars called Le Trincou vival (about a ten-minute drive from the village). However, if you want to eat in the village itself, here are some recommended restaurants:

• The Saint John – A recommended and not too expensive restaurant that serves local food. Link to the restaurant website.
• Chez Robert – Serves an interesting menu for 34 euros with a strong inclination towards Italian food. Link to the restaurant website
• The Mets Time – A cute restaurant, located near the old bridge, that has received quite a few recommendations. Link to the restaurant's Facebook page.

Where is it recommended to live?

The truth is that even though it is a tourist village, you won't find many hotels here. The only reasonable hotel I know of is Chez Robert, a kind of lovely Bed & Breakfast, located in the heart of the village.

Therefore, my unequivocal recommendation is to live in Brantôme, a charming town located about 20 km away. If you take my advice, you are welcome to enter the article Recommended hotels in Brentom And find you simply excellent villas and hotels, which will be an excellent base for a trip to Saint-Jean-de-Cole and many other places nearby.

What else can you see in the area?

• Villar Cave – A beautiful stalactite cave (I was very impressed with it even though I don’t really connect with the stalactite cave genre). You can read more about it in the article Villar Cave – a work of art by nature.
• Chateau de Puyguilhem – A charming 16th century palace, located not far from Villar. You can read about it in the article Château de Pighem – Did we accidentally arrive from the Dordogne to the Loire Valley?
• The town of Brentom – where you can visit an ancient monastery, cruise the canals and eat at a Michelin-starred restaurant. You can read about it in the article Brentom – Venice of the Dordogne.