What to see and do in St Maixent l’École Deux-Sèvres | EUROtoday
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St Maixent l’École is a small city within the Deux-Sèvres area of Nouvelle Aquitaine (about 1 ½ hrs drive from La Rochelle). But for a small city, it packs fairly a cultural punch!
The city was based in 459 by a monk, Agapit and initially known as Saint Saturnin. Maixent, a fellow monk, got here to the city in 480. During the Wars of Religion between 1562 to 1598, St. Maixent marked the border between the Protestant / Huguenots strongholds to the west and the Catholics to the east. At this stage in its historical past, the city was a bustling heart producing cloth, leather-based and mustard. These days, it is a city with some lovely structure and an interesting previous, and it is properly price a day spent exploring.
Stepping by the gates of time
If you arrive through the principle D611, you may at first suppose St Maixent is a reasonably unremarkable city however flip off the highway through the majestic Porte Chalon and the city begins to disclose itself. Porte Chalon was constructed within the 18th century to interchange the previous gates into the fortified a part of the city and as an entrance, it’s surprisingly grand.
Once you’ve got parked (there’s parking on Rue de la Marne), begin with a fast go to to the Tourist Office (stroll down the principle highway west to east – Avenue Gambetta and Rue Denfert Rochereau which run parallel – and you will see the vacationer workplace in your proper). They have some helpful info together with a map with the principle points of interest marked. Look out for the English telephone field as you head off to discover which signifies the cities twinning with the English market city of Horsham.
The Abbey
The inescapable central level of St Maixent is the Abbey which was constructed after the loss of life of St Maixent (c 515). In 653, Léger was appointed abbot of the monastery. The monks left when the Normans arrived however later returned and the city was fortified. The Abbey was rebuilt in Romanesque and Gothic kinds and is open to the general public. It was declared a Royal Abbey in 1204.
The Abbey spire stands proud over the city however as soon as inside, there’s a powerful nave and in addition to a 17th century display screen, an enormous pulpit, cloisters and the crypt with the empty 6th and seventh century tombs of St. Maixent and St. Leger. The church of St Léger reverse the Abbey was inbuilt 7th century however was closed within the 17th century and never rediscovered for 200 hundred years.
From the top of the 19th century proper as much as 2011, the Abbey was additionally house to navy barracks, and you’ll go to the Non-Commissioned Officers Museum within the Merchant Quarter. It has a set of uniforms, weapons and decorations. There is one thing reasonably haunting concerning the huge barracks and the empty sq. and archway in the back of the Abbey and you’ll nearly hear the marching of troopers from the completely different wars that when raged in and across the city.
Exploring the city
Once you’ve got visited the Abbey, it is time to discover the remainder of the city. It’s a reasonably city with cobbled streets, historical half-timber homes leaning tiredly over the roads, grand limestone buildings shimmering within the warmth, attention-grabbing doorways and gates, and shuttered home windows. It’s additionally a inexperienced city too with loads of wisteria, honeysuckle and bougainvillea dripping over its partitions. Although that is probably the most northern a part of southern France, you possibly can really feel a distinctly southern vibe and affect.
Be positive to climb one of many small slender footpaths that wind up Le Peux Saint Martin (a small hill) to the southwest of the city and look again throughout the panorama after which go searching for attention-grabbing buildings.
Mason de l’Apothicaire was inbuilt about 1442 and has an indication that claims Hic Valetudo which implies Health Here! Hotel Balizy was inbuilt 1530 in Renaissance type and was once a courthouse. Apparently, Catherine de Medici as soon as visited.
Beyond the Abbey, you arrive on the Quai des Tanneries. During the Middle Ages, this was the center of the city with a canal constructed by the monks that drove water to the Abbey mill and the tanneries. Today, it is picturesque with slender canal aspect pathways and homes mirrored within the water. There are 4 little footbridges alongside the canal which take you to a wooded space. At the opposite finish, is a big, shaded park. If you are visiting in the summertime, they’ve an ongoing program of occasions that happen right here.
Time to replicate
When you’ve got explored the city, you may fancy a spot of buying within the elegant Rue Chalon or lunch in one of many cafés and eating places there. Or head to the Market Square the place there’s a big indoor market and a cluster of cafés within the shade of the timber. There has been a market held right here since 1469 and at this time the market constructing constructed on the finish of the 19th century has a distinctly Parisian air.
The Haut Val de Sèvre
The space surrounding the city is understood and the Haut Val de Sèvre and is a hilly panorama with lots to find whether or not you need riverside walks, historical past (and even a 15th century Scottish citadel) or to expertise one of many native festivals. The historic city of Niort is to the south west of St Maixent, while to the north is Parthenay an equally historic city and to the east is Poitiers, making St Maixent a great base from which to discover the Deux Sevres.
by Lucy Pitts, journey author and editor of Sussex Exclusive
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