Sights and landmarks in Saintes

Sights and landmarks in Saintes

1. See

   Abbaye aux Dames

   Founded by Count of Anjou Geoffroy Martel and his wife Agnes of Burgundy in 1047, it was once one of the most important female monasteries in southwestern France. It was richly endowed by the Dukes of Aquitaine and at its peak home to up to a hundred nuns from French nobility. Madame de Saintes, the abbess of this monastery, had a very powerful position. She carried a bishop's staff, for female religious leaders an almost unheard of privilege at the time, and also had the right to mint money and act as a judge. In 1320 it was placed under the protection of the French king, as the right bank became French territory, which greatly angered the Duke of Aquitaine (the English king). After the revolution, indeed already somewhat before, the monastery declined, and was converted into a jail and later a barracks. In the mid 20th century it became a religious building again, and is now also a cultural institution. The abbey also has a separate church, the Église Saint-Marie, which has an interesting bell tower which is said to look like a pine cone and a decorated portal, plus some additional buildings related to the abbey.

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   Amphithéâtre gallo-Romain

   Sitting in a green valley, the Roman amphitheater was built almost 2000 years ago under the rule of Tiberius and Claudius. It could seat 15000 spectators (undoubtedly much of the city's inhabitants) and was one of the most important in Gaul. It's built to an elliptical structure and has a size of 126 x 102 m, and fits neatly into the valley. The amphitheater was used as a stone quarry during the Middle Ages, so it's by no means intact. Little remains of the cavea (seating area), the gates are somewhat better preserved. Still it's an important historical monument from the time when the city was named Mediolanum Santonum.

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   Arc de Germanicus

   A triumphal arch built in 18 or 19 AD by Caius Julius Rufus, to celebrate emperor Tiberius, his son Drusus, and his nephew and adoptive son Germanicus. In Roman times it marked the eastern entrance to the city and was placed in the front of the bridge across Charente. When the quai was modernized in 1843-51, the arch was disassembled and rebuilt 15 m away at its current place. Some Roman inscriptions are still visible on the arch.

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   Basilique Saint-Eutrope

   Founded in 1081 by Guillaume VIII, Duke of Aquitaine, it's actually two churches superimposed on each other with stairs in the nave connecting them. The basilica was built to house the relics of martyred Saint Eutrope with his sarcophagus in the upper church and his skull in the lower church. It has been an important stop on the Way of St. James route to Santiago de Compostela ever since. In 1096, not long after it was finished, pope Urban II visited to preach the First Crusade. In 1886, pope Leon XIII promoted the status of the church to basilica. Basilique Saint-Eutrope is considered an architectonical masterpiece with its Romanesque walls, Gothic choir, 11th century baptismal fonts, paintings and stained windows and one of the largest Romanesque crypts in Europe in the lower church surrounding the sarcophagus of the saint.

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   Cathédrale Saint-Pierre

   The large cathedral that's the namesake of the district dominates the old town. There has been at least two cathedrals here earlier, a Merovingian cathedral founded by St Pallais, and a Romanesque cathedral of which the southern cross and a dome have been incorporated in the current building. The Gothic cathedral was once much higher, up to three times higher than its current version. Traces of the ridge raising up to 39 m are still visible on the bell tower, and arcs on the outside raise up above the roof. During the 15th and 16th centuries it was built to those grand proportions, and the cathedral was almost finished when it was largely destroyed by Protestant troops in 1568 during the French Wars of Religion. There weren't funds to rebuild it as large as it had been, and the current height is about a third of what it once was. Surrounding buildings related to the cathedral like the bishops' residence were also not rebuilt.

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   Couvent des Jacobins

   A Dominican monastery established in 1292, it was rebuilt in the 15th century. After the revolution it became a dwelling house. In the 19th century a certain Maurice Martineau with a large collection of books lived there and as he passed away in 1928, the house and the books became the property of the city. Therethrough the municipal library came into being, and which it has been ever since. Only the Gothic choir with its grand bay and inscriptions reveal that this was once a house of worship.

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   Fernand-Chapsal public gardens

   Jardin public Fernand-Chapsal

   Formerly known as Parc Bassompierre, the garden on the Charente river offers great views to the old town and the cathedral. It's divided into a French and an English garden, and has a music kiosk and a playground for children.

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   Governor's house

   Logis du Gouverneur

   One of the last parts of a 17th-century citadel. A few decades after its completion, the region of Saintogne revolted against the king, the rebellion was struck down, and Cardinal Richelieu ordered the citadel to be torn down. In addition to the governors house, there's little left of the fortifications. Later a Carmelite convent, a hospital (later wrecked) and a chapel was built on the grounds. The older buildings have been incorporated in the new Saint-Louis residential district.

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   Musée Archéologique

   Housed in 19th century slaughterhouse, this museum displays items from life during the Roman times. In particular, there's a great collection of gemstones excavated when ramparts were reconstructed in the late 19th century.

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    Musée Dupuy Mestreau

    Ethnographic museum in a building constructed for Marquis Monconseil in the 18th century. There are many different kinds of historical objects on display; clothing (an extensive collection of headgear), objects of daily life from jewellery to earthenware, replicas of habitations and boats

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    Musée de L'Échevinage

    An art museum in a former échevinage (a seat of municipal institutions under the Ancien Régime), classed as a historical monument. The artworks on display are mostly from the 19th century by French painters.

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    National stud farm of Saintes

    Haras National de Saintes

    In a forested park of 9 hectares in size, until 2019 you could experience living 19th century heritage in the form of horse breeding. In 2019 the place was sold to an advertising entrepreneur who plans to convert the buildings into a headquarters for southwestern France, but they'll also house a restaurant, rentable space for startup businesses and apartments. As such you can just admire the buildings from a distance.

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    Parc des Arènes

    A green walk next to the amphitheater, connected to the rest of Saint-Eutrope by a pastoral path named Vallon des Arènes.

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    Place Bassompierre

    A square built in 1843 and named after 17th century bishop Louis de Bassompierre. It's a kind of an esplanade in front of the Fernand-Chapsal gardens where the Germanicus arc was reassembled in 1851. On the square there's a statue of 16th century potter Bernard Palissy who pioneered the Palissy ware ceramics style. The square is a venue for different events and a departure place for river tour boats.

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    Prairie de la Palu

    The region is famous for its meadows and here they reach into the city. A true conservatory for plants and birdlife, this area of 120 hectares has been listed as a protected European Natura 2000 area. It's also welcoming to visitors and has walking trails and signs presenting the ecosystems to visitors.

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    Protestant church of Saintes

    Temple protestant

    The main place of worship of the Reformed church in the city. The church, finished in 1906, was built in many different styles - Neo-Romanesque, Neo-Byzantine and Art Nouveau and listed as a historical monument in 1998.

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    Rue Alsace-Lorraine

    An important pedestrian and shopping street, with more than half of the old town's shops. As such it's a great place to just walk around and do window shopping; or to make some side trips along the alleys. Most façades date from the 17th and 18th centuries though there are still some medieval houses left.

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    Rue Saint-Michel

    The most "medieval" street of the old town, at least when it comes to the houses lining it which were untouched by the 17th century building project. As there are relatively few businesses, it's much less busy than the shopping streets and even overlooked by visitors spending a short time in the city.

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    Rue Victor-Hugo

    Another major shopping street in the old town, also known as the Grand’Rue (big street). It follows the routing of an old Roman street. It's pedestrianized and lined with palms and flowers. Looking towards the Charente river along the street, you can see the Germanicus arc. There's a great variety of businesses on this street from perfume shops and hotels to crêperies and art galleries.

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    Saint-Saloine thermal baths

    Thermes de Saint-Saloine

    Reduced to ruins today, the Saint-Saloine thermal baths were the most important ones in the Roman city. They were built towards the end of the 1st century and modeled on similar baths in Rome. Over the centuries, the baths were first converted into a church, then abandoned in the 16th or 17th century. From the nearby terrace there are nice views of the surroundings.

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    Église Saint-Pallais

    Right next to the Abbaye aux Dames, of which it is an outbuilding, and for a long time the only parish church on the right bank. It was first built in the 12th century to replace Bishop Palladius' funeral basilica, and later modified into Gothic style. This led to some interesting details; columns becoming unused, the Romanesque apse being replaced by a flat bay in "flamboyant" Gothic style, and the bell tower being shortened and covered by an atypical slate roof. There used to be a small cemetery below what's now a public square next to the church.

    Entrée libre

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    Église Saint-Vivien

    Built between 1840 and 1845 by the architect Brossard, this neoclassical church is the fifth church on the place; the first was built in the 5th century. The interior is covered in frescoes, paper decorations, stained glass windows. The façade is rather monumental with its pilasters, pediments and Italian-style belltower.

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    Église Sainte-Colombe

    In the heart of the Quartier Saint-Pierre, and first mentioned in a charter from 1340, it was one of the main churches within the city walls in the Middle Ages. The present church was built in "flamboyant Gothic" style, destroyed during the Wars of Religion and rebuilt as a smaller version in 1638. After the revolution it became disused for more than half a century until 1849, then functioning as a Carmelite convent until 1922 when it first became a grocery store and then a warehouse. In 2000 it was acquired by the Fraternity of St. Pius X, renovated, and is once again a religious building.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Saintes (CC BY-SA 4.0).