Saint-Paul: Holiday Apartments and Holiday Homes

The PAPSE route in Lachaise is suitable for Nordic walking, trail running and mountain biking. Anyone considering Saint-Paul as a destination may wish to rent a holiday apartment.

Landscape

A black poplar on the Lachaise route dates from around 1750. Its trunk has a circumference of 7.30 metres, and the tree is more than 30 metres high. Lachaise offers a typical Champagne charentaise landscape with a wine-growing area that slopes down towards the Né valley. The Né forms Lachaise’s northeastern boundary.

The Ruisseau de la Fontaine de Bagot crosses the western part of Lachaise, while the Ruisseau des Fontaines Blanches crosses the eastern part. In Petite Champagne in Lachaise lies the Domaine de Pladuc, a 19th-century manor house and former winery; its 8,000 m² park is crossed by the Né. Lachaise is located in Petite Champagne, which is considered the second cru of Cognac.

History and Culture

Lachaise retains the clearly visible remains of a levelled medieval motte surrounded by a moat; the associated fortifications date back at least to the 12th century. Saint-Vivien is a former Benedictine priory in Lachaise, built at the end of the 12th century and dependent on Baignes Abbey.

A stained-glass window in the Benedictine priory of Saint-Vivien in Lachaise depicts Saint Vivien, the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Saint Joseph. A long Gothic chapel with three bays was added to the north side of Saint-Vivien church, forming a second nave.

The Moulin de la Ménarde probably dates from the early 18th century and is recorded on Cassini’s 1760 map of mills. The surviving remains include the entrance, a water channel that now forms a waterfall, and a millstone hidden beneath the trees.

On Site

Access to the Sentier au fil de l'eau is located at Place de l'église in Le Bourg, 16300 Lachaise. Saint-Vivien church was open daily.

Other places: Barbezieux-Saint-Hilaire, Soyaux, Juillé, Abzac, Le Vieux-Cérier, Vouzan, Lessac, Verteuil-Sur-Charente.

To the higher-level travel overview: Charente.