By visiting our Pays des Achards, you won't find a big cathedral, no world famous castle. No Historic Monument with a capital M and H. "Only" of Small Heritage. And yet… It is indeed this “little” heritage that will reveal to you the soul of our territory!
Each cut stone, each rubble laid tell the story of our ancestors, their hard work, their religious fervor, their daily life, distant and yet so close to ours. Here are some keys to decipher these witnesses of the past.
The small heritage tells the big story.
The religious heritage
The churches
Many churches were damaged or destroyed during the Wars of Religion and the French Revolution. Churches that have retained their original buildings are rare. However, we advise you to visit some of them:
- The church of Beaulieu-sous-la-Roche : historiated capitals from the 14e century represent some of the 7 deadly sins.
- In the church of La Chapelle-Achard, the choir of 11e century is vaulted in the bottom of an oven in a regular apparatus of cut stones.
- The church of La Chapelle-Hermier : built in 12e century, it still has Romanesque characteristics today.
- Rebuilt at 19e century in a neo-Gothic style, the church of Nieul-le-Dolent has preserved beautiful carved tombstones, where inscriptions and coats of arms mingle.
- The choir and the square bell tower of the church of Saint-Georges-de-Pointindoux date from 12e century and the barrel-vaulted nave from the 17e century. On the sculpture side, imaginary heads rub shoulders with capitals representing 4 deadly sins: anger, laziness, jealousy and gluttony.
![Eglise Terrasses du Jaunay à Beaulieu sous la Roche]()
Beaulieu-sous-la-Roche ![Eglise de la Chapelle Hermier]()
La Chapelle-Hermier ![Eglise de Saint Georges de Pointindoux villages Pays des Achards]()
Saint-Georges-de-Pointindoux
Chapels
Several small chapels complete this religious heritage:
- Garreau's Chapel in La Chapelle-Hermier is the busiest pilgrimage center in the lower maritime Vendée. Louis XIII would have come there after his victory over the Protestants at Riez.
- The Chapel of Moulières in Saint-Georges-de-Pointindoux is of ancient origin. However, it had to be rebuilt several times.
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La Salette ![La Chapelle des Moulières patrimoine St Georges]()
Les Moulieres ![Patrimoine La Chapelle Garreau à la Chapelle Hermier]()
Garreau's Chapel
The Hosannier crosses
These are funerary monuments specific to the West of France. The faithful sang the hosanna on Palm Sunday.
- The hosanne cross des Achards (La Chapelle district) is the largest in the canton with its base of 4 steps.
- A hosannière cross from 1607 dominates the current Girouard cemetery. Composed of granite and raised on a base of tombstones, it comes from the old cemetery which was located to the right of the church.
To these crosses are added numerous calvaries and mission crosses, near churches or along roads, and which testify to the importance of the Catholic faith of our ancestors.
Traditional housing
In Vendée, we call " village » a hamlet and the « borough » is the place which gathers the church and the town hall. The whole of the town and the villages forms what is called the “commune”.
Our traditional habitat is largely a rural habitat. Small villages often group together rural houses which sometimes have one floor. One often finds there longères, long houses of the small peasants who gathered modest habitat and shelter for the animals.
The wide central portal of the barn allowed the passage of carts. Hay, straw and agricultural equipment were stored there.
We discover some bourgeois houses in the towns of our communes, such as Les Achards (La Mothe district) or Sainte-Flaive-des-Loups. These dwellings, which appeared in the 19e century, then belonged to people of high social status. They were characterized by the presence of a floor, a symmetrical facade with large aligned openings, four-sided roofs, with large chimneys and so-called "noble" materials, such as slate or tufa. Some of these bourgeois houses are now private properties.
Many small castles are visible from the road. However, they cannot visit each other. the Chateau Gaillard, an emblematic monument of the Girouard, is actually a presbytery from the 19e century.
Small buildings linked to daily and agricultural life
The little everyday building is probably the most touching. Well, fountains et sources recall the importance of water points. Numerous laundries have regained their former beauty thanks to careful restorations. The communal bread oven and the dovecote du Girouard form a particularly original ensemble. Even if the wings are missing today, the Chiron Mill at Chapelle-Hermier and that of a place called “Les Trois Moulins” in Beaulieu-sous-la-Roche look great.
Most of our hiking trails take you to meet these small constructions present throughout the territory. For a summary of small heritage over a few kilometres, choose the Washhouse Trail in Les Achards, the educational trail Le P'tit Val Gaillard at the Girouard or the Birdhouse Trail in Beaulieu-sous-la-Roche.
For a discovery of historical heritage of the Achards (La Mothe district) in fashion " treasure hunt ", choose instead the geocaching route ou the Adventure Lab course “If La Mothe was told to me”.
Make the most of your visit to Les Achards (La Mothe district) to discover the architecture of halls who welcome our weekly market. Combining iron, cast iron and glass, this small Baltard-style pavilion built in 1924 has replaced the old wooden halls. Look up, then you will see the old coat of arms of the municipality perched on the gable. It represents a silver lion, a symbol of hope and purity, on an azure background indicating justice.
![Le pigeonnier du Girouard patrimoine]()
The Dovecote of the Girouard ![Les Halles des Achards]()
Les Halles ![]()
The Mill of Chiron
Heritage Days
This is the perfect opportunity to visit our little gems! Thanks to the commitment of municipalities and volunteers, you can discover from the inside and in detail churches, chapels, mills and buildings that once housed shops or schools.
Consult our calendar!
