On the Ardéchoise Mountain, the village of Saint Cirgues en Montagne welcomes you in the heart of an area of fir forests, flourishing meadows and streams full of fish. On Place du Breuil, the central point of the village, the Sunday market is held.
Description
The mushroom and horse fair organized on the 2nd weekend of October is the flagship event of the village and the Place du Breuil.
The surrounding nature, prodigal of its flowers, offers a veritable botanical reserve available to walkers who can enhance their walks by picking mushrooms and berries.
As for fishing enthusiasts, the many rivers will allow them to tease trout and minnows.
As often, for lack of written documents, the origins of the village are very poorly known. It would not always have been on its current location, but located on the steep side of the hill at the top of which was located the Château des Eperviers which dominated the confluence of the Loire and the Vernazon, north of the current village. The remains of the castle can still be seen from the road to Lake Issarlès. The lords were from the Eperviers family, vassals of the Itiers de Géorand who joined the Lévi-Ventadour family.
This village would have developed as far as the banks of the Vernazon, at a place called "Traverse", but there is practically nothing left; we only notice on the bank a large green square where fairs and markets could have been held, as well as vestiges of stones, exceeding the grass, where the cattle would have been tied. This site is about two kilometers north of the current village, following the course of the Vernazon.
The villagers gathered in the Romanesque church of the village where monks officiated from the priory of Goudet in the upper Loire, then from the abbey of St Chaffre in Monastier. This chapel built in the XNUMXth century has been the subject of numerous extensions in order to accommodate the growing number of faithful. It dominates the village with its stained glass windows and its comb bell tower.
The hallmarks of this church are the chevet with the ornate corbels which can represent the signs of the zodiac very similar to those of the church of Lesperon,
they could have been made by the same craftsmen.
A stone from the pre-Romanesque period classified as a historic monument could come from an older church or from a priory, it is inside the church.
The restoration of the stained glass according to the technique of Louis Petit (dyeing in the grisaille mass) by distinguishing those which in slab of glass (combining glass and cement) were designed by the artist but carried out by the workshops of Saint Benoit on the Loire; and those of (the canopy) above the main door designed and made by Louis René Petit.
The statue of St Cirgues located behind the main door has a panel telling of his life and his ordeal.
The village of Saint Cirgues en Montagne was also the birthplace of Father Auguste Jean Baptiste Tauleigne, a renowned scientist, who was also parish priest of Pontigny until his death in 1926.
We also offer:
Many producers offer you their cheeses, cold meats, fruits, vegetables, jams and much more all year round.
Hotel – bar – restaurant, on the banks of the Mazan river. Family business, 3rd generation of hotel and restaurant owners. Come and enjoy the calm of the Ardéchoise Mountain.
More than 90 exhibitors, producers and craftsmen await you at the mushroom and horse fair. Horses, farrier, saddlery, carriage rides, woodcarver, merry-go-round, wooden games, face painting, raffle. Meals by reservation.
Come and enjoy the Saint-Cirgues-en-Montagne lake not far from the campsite to cool off. Play areas are present for children.
Location