Follow the route of historical discovery through the streets of this ancient medieval city, with audioguides and videos richly illustrated with ancient documents.
Listen to the story about how a small fishing village during the Gallic era became a city called Beaulieu, built around an abbey, from the 11th century onwards.
From the 13th to the 17th centuries, Beaulieu sur Dordogne, which used to be called Bellus Locus, was a fortified city. This video shows how the town’s old fortifications were organized and how different parts can still be seen today.
You are standing before Jean and Amédée Bouyssonie’s family home. These two abbotts were fascinated by archaeology. In 1908 they made an important discovery : they found the skeleton of a Neanderthal man in La Chapelle aux Saints. Listen to the interview with Archaeologist Thierry Bismuth to find out all there is to know about this discovery.
During the “Ancien Régime”, town councils were called consulates. Traces of Beaulieu’s consulates can be seen today, on several building façades, such as « la maison du consul ».
Find out further information thanks to the audioguide.
Beaulieu sur Dordogne’s abbey church was built amongst a Cluny abbey. The town developed around this ensemble.
Find out about the church’s typical Cluny-style architecture and history thanks to this video, and discover how the abbey cloister and monastic buildings were organized.
Beaulieu church’s tympanum is a masterpiece of Romanesque art. Observe the detail of different scenes depicted here, and the symbolic of sculpted creatures and characters.
The sculptures on the façades of several houses show that Beaulieu was a prosperous town during the Renaissance.
This audioguide will tell you more about these various elements.
During WWII, a colony of young Israeli girls settled down in this house in Beaulieu. Roundups became frequent and townspeople such as Adrenne Laquièze strived to save these young Jewish girls from being deported.
Listen to the audioguide to hear their story.
This chapel, which used to be the parish church, also belonged to the Blue Penitents Fraternity. This video explains the history of the chapel and its numerous artworks.
The Dordogne riverside is a lovely place to take a stroll, but for centuries, the river was an obstacle to be crossed, as well as a means of transportation for merchandise.
Step back in time thanks to this video and its many archival images, to discover the river’s history, its bridges, gabare boats and the people who worked here, such as the Dordogne’s « passeuses d’eau ».
Beaulieu was an important Resistance spot during WWII. The secret army « maquis » was organized by people such as Gontrand Royer.
This audioguide will tell you all about Resistance in Beaulieu.
Thanks to its lovely landscapes, Beaulieu attracted many artists in the late 19th century and became a popular holiday spot in the 20th century. Watch this video and discover Beaulieu in a whole new way : through the eyes of artists, thanks to archival images.
On the pediment, an an inscription written in Greek can be read : "Are you looking for the muses' honey ? Stop here and drink, what I am going to give you is the best ever nectar"
What is the meaning of "honey of the muses"?
On the pediment, an an inscription written in Greek can be read : "Are you looking for the muses' honey ? Stop here and drink, what I am going to give you is the best ever nectar"
What is the meaning of "honey of the muses"?
We are talking here about knowledge. It can be noted that the producers of Vin Paillé used this quote by taking "the honey of the muses" on their bottles.
We are talking here about knowledge. It can be noted that the producers of Vin Paillé used this quote by taking "the honey of the muses" on their bottles.
We are talking here about knowledge. It can be noted that the producers of Vin Paillé used this quote by taking "the honey of the muses" on their bottles.
