Châtellerault on the river Vienne.

A river port on the way to Santiago.

The now dwindling inheritance of its industrial history once dominated this town. Its roots are ancient and reach back to a time when a settlement established itself at the upper reaches of the navigable river. Pilgrims making their way to Santiago de Campostelo made the stream a mediaeval motorway and the river port grew into a trading post which developed artisanal skills to supply goods to the passing throng. Not least were their eating implements and cutlery became a mainstay of the town eventually developing into the manufacture of blades for swords and later more modern armaments.

A King's bridge and a factory of arms.

The factory closed in the late 1960's. Nevertheless its distinctive twin chimneys - now incorporated into a cultural and museum complex - together with the multi-arched King Henry IV bridge (completed in 1611) are the two landmarks that generally represent Châtellerault. They are mentioned briefly in gazetteers and guide books before the texts rush north to the Châteaux of the Loire or south to Poitiers. In doing so they confirm the things they are neglecting about this north eastern corner of la Vienne: it is central to many surrounding districts and the river valley now cradles a modern motorway.

Wedding party outside the Hotel de Ville.

Good shops and local services.

Nowadays the bridge is a platform for fishermen as well as a thoroughfare and the river banks provide places to linger and to walk. The heart of the community has moved to the Avenue Blossac - more of a long elongated square than a street - which is a fine central point for a population of some 35,000 souls. Fairly recent town-scaping has managed to create an open area with a fountain and a bandstand in front of the Hotel de Ville. Nevertheless space is still available for (generally) easy car parking within a stone's throw of a good variety of shops and other retail services. Little more than 15 miles from the much larger town of Poitiers and linked by the busy Vienne Corridor (see those pages on this site too) Châtellerault is surrounded on all other sides by a rural hinterland.

Leigné-les-Bois is a nearby Cotswolds-like village.

Spa waters between two rivers.

The area it might call its own is a little enclave to the east between the River Vienne and the Creuse valley which forms the boundary with the neighbouring Département of Indre-et-Loire. The towns along that river choose their administrative area according to which bank they stand on. Port-de-Piles is in the very north-easternmost point of la Vienne and close to the confluence of the two rivers. From near Descartes (the town itself is on the other side) a particularly pretty route (D5) runs upriver.

La Roche Posay, nearly due east of Châtellerault, links itself firmly with that town. It's a charming place - a small spa which seems to have recaptured some of the atmosphere of its 19th century foundation. The thermal waters are said to have remarkable curative powers for skin disease. Otherwise Dancé-St-Romain is the largest of several small towns and villages that can be found among the scattering of pastures, woods and forests that inhabit this peaceful north east corner of the Département of la Vienne.

The 18th century grain market at Scorbé-Clairvaux was restored in 1995. It stands near the gate of the Chateau and doubles as a modern market.

On the western side of the river Scorbé-Clairvaux is an attractive village standing sentry on the vague border we have drawn between this area and the adjacent "Loudun and north Vienne". The local château houses a remarkable collection of chess sets while the residents of the community are known as Clairvoyants - something that one should, perhaps, remember if challenged to any mind game while on a visit.