Attractions and Places To See around Sousmoulins - Top 15

You have to be very careful with the roots of the acacias which lift the bitumen in places as well as the thorns of these trees. Otherwise very pleasant.

Consider deviating from the cycle path for a few minutes. Church your real the detour

Some sections of the track are damaged by tree roots and dangerous on a road bike. I often prefer to go by road.

The high octagonal tower of the bell tower consists of two floors. The first is embellished on each side with two high blind bays. The second finished in the Gothic period is added by eight large windows. The inner curve of each is cut into small lobes reminiscent of the Moorish style. During the construction of the facade, the nave was shortened by one bay. In the 14th century ogival style, the arched portal with arches is accompanied by a trefoil window underlined by a checkered cornice. The square chevet has preserved in the masonry old parts of the semi-circular chevet of Romanesque origin: remains of arcades on columns with capitals, remains of cornices and windows. The old bay in front of the choir is remarkable for the quality of the sculptures of the Romanesque capitals. One represents a shrine on an altar guarded by two figures. According to C. Connoué, it is an original subject for Saintonge which would have its similar in the church of Notre-Dame-de-Soulac (Gironde). The shrine represents a church whose two-storey bell tower has a conical roof like that of the Abbaye aux Dames in Saintes or closer to Rouffignac, Nieul-Ie-Virouil. The scene is framed by two large chandeliers, furniture that is rarely represented in Saintonge sculpture. On another capital, Adam and Eve are represented after the original sin in silly niches drawn by small trees, including that of Good and Evil. Another shows birds in leaves, a subject that is also treated in the church of Grézac or in that of Jarnac-Champagne. Outside, the Romanesque chevet is punctuated by engaged columns of decreasing section.

The church is in the form of a rectangle thirty meters long and ten meters wide, flanked by 4 buttresses, one of which is located on the north wing and the 3 others on the south wing, a bell tower and a small extension on the south west part housing a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Massive building, reinforced by buttresses, low and poorly lit, it has a facade with a Romanesque portal surmounted by a large rose window. This gate is made up of 2 straight legs, and a projecting coving made up of 3 semicircular rollers with a keystone. The oculus rose is surrounded by a frieze with a sawtooth motif. The porch opens onto a single nave 22 m long by 9 wide without side aisles. It is made up of 4 bays with semi-circular vaults. The south wall is pierced under the 1st bay with a large semi-circular arch giving access to the chapel. The north wall has a pulpit which bears a monogram which would be that of Louis XIV. The choir of the church, raised from the nave by 3 steps, consists of a flat chevet and a span of semi-circular vaults. The bedside wall is pierced at each end with a rectangular door allowing access to the sacristy. The old sacristy has just been refurbished and has a very modern look with paneling on the floor and ceiling. The chapel of the Virgin is located on the southern extension of the church. It measures 13.50 m long by 7 wide, and consists of a small single nave 10 m long by 7 wide and a choir with a flat apse. The floor of this chapel is 1.25 m lower than the floor of the church corresponding to the initial floor of the old abbey. Access to the bell tower is through a door located on the east wall of the nave of the chapel. It consists of 4 floors and a vaulted ground floor. The facing is made up of medium-sized cut stone for the ground floor and the 1st floor and rubble stone coated with brown lime for the 2nd and 3rd floors.

In the second half of the 12th century, a long nave (32 x 8 m) was built, with a west facade with blind arcades and a flat chevet. In the 13th century, the west portal was rebuilt up to date and the nave received perhaps its first ribbed vaults. A Gothic bell tower-porch was built in front of the nave in the 15th century, which lengthened the church by some five metres. The floor surmounted by a spire is pierced with twin bays, underlined by a cord. Its base forms a marthex. On each side of this closed porch are two small chapels with vaults decorated with coats of arms and reproducing corner consoles sculpted with grotesque characters. The 12th century facade is pierced by an ogival portal. The arches fall on the 3 capitals of the torus columns. The door is flanked by 2 blind arched bays with a zigzag band and diamond points. Around the portal, an inscription: “The French recognize the existence of the supreme being and the immortality of the soul”. In the 15th century, the nave was doubled to the north. This vaulting was destroyed during the wars of religion and the ribbed vaults were redone in 1872. The large broken arches which separate the 2 vessels from the nave fall into penetration on large cylindrical piles. On the south wall, a group of 3 columns decorated with large foliage receives the ribs of the vaults. The south side wall from the nave to the chevet was rebuilt with old materials, some of which are carved stones. The large tracery canopy is followed by 3 Romanesque windows decorated with billets and diamond points. The choir with a flat apse is lit by a Romanesque triplet with small columns and polylobed arches. It is a provision that we find rather outside the churches. Outside, these 3 windows have no columns and are surmounted by a cornice shaped like a whistle on brackets and a large half-moon opening. In 1996-1998, a restoration campaign brought to light mural paintings and a funerary liter, a striking portrait of death. Special features to see also: a very beautiful stone pulpit and wrought iron railing from the 19th century as well as an oil on canvas, "Crucifixion", from the beginning of the 19th century.

A bike path, only for bikes and in the countryside! 35 kms from Barbezieux to Clérac in complete peace of mind on a paved road, a real pleasure! Surprising but very pleasant especially for families with children who can walk there in peace.

Baignes Abbey became a parish church after the revolution. It was part of the diocese of Saintes until the middle of the 19th century. The foundation of the Abbey would seem to date back to the 11th century. It was ransacked during the 100 Years War and then destroyed by the Protestants. The current building is totally different from the Old Abbey due to the destruction/modifications that have taken place.