The Arms of the Town of Villebois Lavalette

Brief History of Villebois

The town of Villebois dates back to the pre-Roman period when there was a Gallic town on the site. The Romans built a castle at the top of the hill, next to the house of Villeboisien. This was followed by a medieval fortress, founded in the 8th century and finished in the 12th century, which included a chapel now classed as a historic monument. The fortress was enlarged in the 13th century; its location made it much coveted and it repeatedly changed hands, with the English occupying it between 1360 and 1376, during the hundred years war. Much of it was demolished by the Duke of Navaille, who built a castle, using the earlier walls, and occupied it in 1665. In 1822, a great fire destroyed half of the castle . Since 1980, much restoration work has been done and continues to this day. Within the town itself, the market place, built in 1665, is of particular interest and close-by is a 17th century sun-dial.

Location (click here to see map)

Villebois is located in the South-West of France about 22 km south of Angouleme, the regional capital. There is TGV (high-speed train) service to Angouleme from Paris and Bordeaux--from Montparnasse station in Paris, the journey takes about 2:20 hours, and from the TGV station in Terminal 2 of Charles de Gaulle airport it takes a little over 3 hours. Bordeaux with its airport is about 1¼ hours away. By road, it is only about 20km from the N10--a major North-South artery.