Village life

The medieval town of St Bonnet

St Bonnet was the hometown of Françoise de Bonne, duke of Lesdiguières and the last Connétable of France, but it’s history dates even further back and remnants of its past are still there today….: the house where the duke of Lesdiguières was born, ‘la place Grenette’ with its covered marketplace, ‘la place aux Herbes’ with its ancient stone arcade and the medieval architecture still evident in the streets of ‘Saint-Jacques’ the tower, the hospital and the Château de Daillon (fortified in the 17th century) with it’s old walnut wood doors.

Place Grenette

Standing in this square feels like going back in time to the middle ages! It was the central market place for cereals and grains, hence its name (‘Grenette’ means grain). The current wooden structure was actually built in 1843 and is quite unusual; there are four wooden beams supporting the roof with a pulley for weighing sacks of grain fixed to each one. In the centre is a square stone which would have helped the men hoist the heavy grain sacks onto their backs and a 16th century well, which would have been the only source of drinking water in the village. The building currently adjoining this structure is now the tourist office. It used to be the pastor’s house.

Tourist Office de tourisme: 0033 / 4 92 50 02 57

The village of Prapic