Castels: Churches, Castle History and Routes
Accommodation in Castels
Explore Castels through its cultural, historical and landscape features: churches dating from the 12th to 14th centuries, the Château d’Argentonesse, the Font-chaude sulphur spring and marked trails offer different starting points for planning your trip. If you are planning a stay in Castels, you can then choose whether you are especially interested in ecclesiastical architecture, the history of the castle, or activities and nature along marked routes.
Churches and their architectural history
The Ancienne Ă©glise Saint-Clair du Vieux-Castel was united with the monastery of Saint-Cyprien in 1309. Features of its choir include sculpted capitals with winged monsters and seven arcades supported by small columns, with capitals decorated with foliage. The Eglise Saint Martin dates from the 12th and 14th centuries and is listed in the cultural heritage inventory. The Eglise Saint Pierre-es-liens dates from the 12th and 13th centuries; its interior has been extensively restored. The 12th century provides a shared point of reference, while the other construction details and the interior restoration highlight different aspects.
Château d’Argentonesse: Architecture and History
The Château d’Argentonesse brings together different construction phases: its upper section is a 19th-century Renaissance structure resting on the vaulted ceilings of a former 14th-century castle. A 55-metre-long terrace runs alongside the château; two square towers are also attached to it. During the Second World War, the château served as a hiding place for Jewish families and as a meeting place for the Resistance. The castle’s architectural history and wartime history thus offer two distinct perspectives, clearly separated in time.
Springs and marked routes
Font-chaude is a hot sulphur spring in Castels, known since Gallo-Roman times. Its historical context reaches far back before the construction phases mentioned for the churches and castle. The Eglise Notre-Dame de Redon Espic lies deep in the forest and close to a spring that supplies Castels et BĂ©zenac. Its woodland setting and proximity to the spring give this church a different landscape context from the architectural features described above.
The Boucle de BĂ©zenac is an easy circular route of 8.2 km, with a stated walking time of 2 hours and 30 minutes. If distance, difficulty and walking time are important to your plans, check the route details before setting out. The Boucle de Castels is designated for horse riding, hiking and mountain biking, and offers historical and natural points of interest relating to fauna and flora. The two routes can be considered through different questions: for BĂ©zenac, distance, walking time and difficulty rating are the focus; for Castels, the designated activities and the themes of nature and history take centre stage.
Church Trail and Historic Pilgrimage
The “Circuit des églises” church trail explores the architectural and historical features and furnishings of churches. It focuses on churches as a theme, while the architectural histories described above focus on individual buildings. An annual pilgrimage was held at the Chapelle des apparitions de Redon Espic on 8 September, starting in 1815. This historic tradition adds a religious dimension to the themes of church architecture and furnishings.
Discover more destinations: Sainte-Croix, Bourgnac, Simeyrols, Servanches, Proissans, Sigoules, La Force, Vergt
Return to the main travel overview: Dordogne.
