Montbron: a little of its history ...

What to see in Montbron ? The prehistoric of the Tardoire Valley ( Le Placard, La Chaise, Montgaudier ) as well as the site of Fontéchévade, to the north west of the parish, bear witness to the fact that the region of Montbron was inhabited by early men. Later came the Romains who built villas (fragments of columns and mosaics have been excavated close to the village of Courtillas), but they were burnt down by the germanic tribes of the Vth century. After the death of Clovis, Berulfi, the Frank chief who was responsible for pacifying the region, probably left a garrison here. The old gaulish hill fort became the Monte Berulfy of the Middle Ages, which later became Montbérou and then Montbron. From the year one thousand,amongst the valiant knights given to France by the barons of Montbron are Robert III and Robert V who fought at the Crusades and later Robert VI who was killed at the battle of Crécy in 1346. It is to these barons of Montbron that we owe the construction of a feudal castle (on the site of the existing castle) and, in the XII th century, the Romanesque church close a Benedictine priory affiliated to Cluny. The last baron of the line, François II , fought in the Hundred Years war at the side of Charles VII but, on his return, he found his castle razed and his lands abandoned. Ruined, he sold his barony in 1471 to the Countess of Angoulême, Marguerite de Rohan. It was she who built the present castle. In 1516 the barony of Montbron was given to Madeleine de Savoie, cousin of the king François Ier as dowry. She married the Constable Anne de Montmorency, one of the richest noble in France. Two of his descendants who conspired against Richelieu were beheaded and the county of Montbron was bought by the family Loménie de Brienne who were to give the country several statesmen and prelates... On the death of the last Loménie, the estate was purchased in 1699 by Etienne Chérade, the rich mayor of Angoulême, ennobled Count of Montbron. His descendants, who emigrated at the beginning of the Revolution in 1789, saw their estate confiscated by the state and sold. The castle was bought by the town council and used for their municipal assemblies. It was there n 1793, the country being in danger, that meetings were held day and night to enrol volunteers, arm them, equip them, clothe them and send them to war without delay... The castle was used by the town council until 1949 when they settled in the present town hall, which was built by Doctor Laborde, mayor of Montbron who died in captivity during the first world war.

Its « grande fontaine »... Its castle... Dominating the Tardoire Valley, on top of the Barbacane ramp, the castle was erected in 1480 by Marguerite de Rohan (grandmother of the king François I) on the site of the medieval fortress. This fortress was destroyed during the Hundred Years war, on the command of Charles VII, to prevent the English from entrenching themselves. It stood next to St Peter’s church. During the XIX th century, the surroundings were cleared, the remnants of the fortifications and the church, what was left of it, destroyed. (A few remaining carvings can be seen on the front of two hours close by in Gambetta street : a chimera and « scallops »). The building is rectangular (probably built on the Romanesque foundations). On the southern side, the castle has been extended and the facade has several large mullion windows. On the ground floor, a beautiful ogee arched door gives access to the polygonal tower in which a spiral staircase leads to the three floors of the castle. At present, the castle is being restored and therefore closed to visitors. We can only tell you that the two rooms on the first floor have a magnificent painted decor dating from the first half of the XVII th century. In one of these rooms a beam is decorated with foliated patterns, and along the top of the walls, we are discovering fragments of frescoes. A frieze of various coats of arms. The two mantelpieces are painted with mythological scenes : Mars, Venus and a god of love on one, Persius and Andromeda on the other.

The castle and St Peter’s church in 1612

At the foot of the castle, walking down the Barbacane street, you can find on your left the pathway leading to the grande fontaine. With a little imagination, you may wander back in the Middle Ages like one of the numerous pilgrims who, on the route of St Jacques de Compostelle used to cross the Tardoire, walk along the ramparts of this city to have a rest at the Benedictine almonry. Neither the ramparts nor almonry remain, but close by the spring which supplied the inhabitants with clear water and where the pilgrims washed away the mud and dust of the roads before wandering through the streets of the town can still be seen.

Its Lepers’ Chapel... A flood of pilgrims took the secondary route to St Jacques de Compostelle. There were a good source of revenue for the city of Montbron but also a source of sudden epidemics such a leprosy. The unfortunates who caught the disease were taken to the leper colony beside the small chapel, Notre-Dame du Bon-Secours built in the XII th century on the outskirts of the town. When they died they were buried as close as possible to the chapel, in holes the shape of their bodies without a coffin and with only a terra-cotta urn at the head. A great number of these graves were found when the cooperative was built... With its roof of roman tiles and its small pyramidal bell tower, the rectangular building opens onto a narthex in whose shelter the faithful could attend the service celebrated for the lepers inside, whom one could see between the slender curved columns forming the two small windows. Dedicated to the Virgin, the Chapel shelters a very graceful and old statue in painted wood.

Its church Saint Maurice ... The church was built in the XII th century in the Romanesque style of the region. It replaced a small church which belonged to the priory founded in the XI th century and affiliated to the Abbey of Cluny. The austere facade, built in the fine cut stone of the region, is divided into three parts by long decorated cordons. It is embellished by the portal with its five semi circular arches, sculpted with motifs (arches, festoons and finely carved circles) reminiscent of Byzantine ornament. At each side of the door are unadorned thin columns, one of which has been cut short to support a stoup. The side walls of the church are supported by strong flat buttresses. On the south side there used to be a cloister, and it is at the foot of this wall that several barons of Montbron are buried. Niches, latin inscriptions engraved in the wall, a recumbent knight wearing his surcoat and lying on a tombstone preserve their memory. The paler colour of the apse shows it has been recently restored. The apse and the apsidal chapels are decorated with graceful columns, blind arches and modillions. Tall narrow windows with their modern stained glass light the chapels. The belfry has a square base ornamented with blind arches ; the upper part is octagonal and in each face there is a double arched window. Surmounting this, there is a conical spire covered in lauzes, a characteristic common to many bell towers in West Aquitain. Inside, the broken barrel vault of the nave is divided in two by a stone arched rib resting on two engaged columns, the capitals of which are decorated with primitive engravings of foliage and human heads. A big arch framed by two small arches gives access to the crossing of the transept, surmounted by a Byzantine cupola. The choir and the five apsidal chapels are vaulted in cul-de-four (semi dome). On the north side of the nave is the entrance to a gothic chapel built in the XVI th century for the wedding of a local lord.

Plan of Montbron center

MONTBRON Charente

Document réalisé et imprimé par Office de Tourisme Place de l’ Hôtel de Ville. 16220 - MONTBRON Tel. 05 45 23 60 09