SAINT JUNIEN
St Junien is approx 30 mins from the centre of Limoges and approx 25 mins from the Airport with daily flights to & from 4 UK airports, the town is very pretty and has an huge choice of Bars, cafes and restaurants.
There is a popular market every week with fresh produce of offer from around the region. The town also has a golf course and a large range of supermarkets, DIY shops, doctors and a veterinary surgery and everything else you would need for either a holiday of permanent residency.
The town of Saint-Junien owes its name and its origins to a hermit, who lived during the VIth century in a grotto. When he died, an abbey was erected above his grave. During the XIth and XIIth centuries it was replaced by the Collégiale (collegiate church), located in place Deffuas.
The town has a very rich architectural heritage: the Collégiale, the Notre Dame du Pont Chapel, the Saint-Guignefort Chapel, the Saint-Amand abbey, the Consuls House, the Executioner Tower, the Sainte-Elisabeth Bridge, the Notre-Dame Bridge, Jean Teillet’s House ...
The city of Saint-Junien is also well known for its leather industry and more particularly for its gloves...
Camille Corot (1796-1875), a painter with an international reputation, loved to paint Saint-Junien, along the banks of the river Glane, as at... The Corot Site!
| Glove capital If you decide to slip your hand into a glove while in France then the chances are it came from the beautiful town of Saint-Junien, set amongst stunning rolling countryside in the Limousin. Seven workshops are responsible for keeping almost half a million French hands warm every year. The town is named after a devoutly religious hermit who would use the waters of a sacred spring to cure those who sought him out. |
| Spiritual growth The hermit's popularity was so immense that when he died his funeral was conducted by the Bishop of Limoges and an impressive tomb was constructed around his body. The religious significance of the site grew until eventually a monastery, and then the town we know today, was created around it. Despite it’s spiritual atmosphere, the town became a hotbed of resistance during the Second World War. Troops heading towards the Normandy coast to take on the D-Day invasion found themselves held up here after a railway bridge was destroyed giving the Allies crucial time.
Don’t forget your paintbrush |
| Making Limousin proud St-Junien has a fantastic wealth of architectural heritage, chief of which is the Monastery of St-Junien. This impressive building was constructed in the late 11th Century in a typically Romanesque-Limousin style. The main façade was only completed a century later, while the square chevet is from the 13th Century. The central bell tower collapsed in 1922 and was promptly re-built. Once you step inside keep your eyes open for the wonderful frescoes from the 12th and 13th Centuries that are dotted around. St-Junien’s tomb, a triumph of 12th Century Limousin sculpting, can be found behind the main alter. A wander through time Not far from the town is the Chateau de Rochebrune, dating back to the 11th and 12th Centuries. Its most distinguished owner was Marshal Blaise de Montluc who made a name for himself by persecuting Protestants during the Wars of Religion. Fortunately, it is now very much public property so you can stroll the impressive grounds and tour the inside with its many artefacts from the Napoleonic era. |
| How to get there Access to Saint-Junien couldn’t be easier. You can now fly to nearby Limoges from a wide range of UK airports. The city is also linked to the high speed TGV rail network, which is the most comfortable way of traversing the country. |
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Le Bœuf Rouge (traditional cooking, Limousin gastronomy)
- 57, boulevard Victor Hugo - tél: 05.55.02.31.84 |
L'Auberge du Golf (traditional cooking) - Les Jouberties - Tel: 05.55.02.96.96
La Bodega (Mediterranean cooking)- 15, rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau - Tel:
05.55.02.56.38
La Bolée (crêpes (pancakes) - salads - grill) - 19, rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau -
Tel: 05.55.02.36.69
La Bourse (restaurant) - 2, place Lénine - Tel: 05.55.02.72.47
Le Cadran (brassiere - salads – tea room) - 2, boulevard de la République - Tel:
05.55.02.09.46
Le Centrale (brasserie – quick snack) - 4, Rue Vermorel - 05.55.02.13.60
Le Cervaloze (brasserie - salads – tea room) - Croyer - Tel: 05.55.02.37.99
L'Esquisse (crêperie – tea room) - 12, place Deffuas - Tel: 05.55.02.53.40
Fleur de Lotus (Asian cooking) - 18, rue Defaye - Tel: 05.55.02.53.22
Grillburger (restaurant-grill) - Centre Commercial Leclerc - Tel:
05.55.02.00.20
Kadour (quick snack - sandwiches - kebab) - 8, place Lénine - Tel:
05.55.02.42.94
Le Landais (traditional cooking of the Sud-Ouest), - 6, boulevard de la
République - Tel: 05.55.02.12.07
Lauryvan (gastronomic cooking) - L'Auberge du Lauryvan (traditional local
cooking with local ingredients) - Le Bois au Bœuf - Tel: 05.55.02.26.04
Mc Donald (quick snack) - Centre Commercial Carrefour
La Paillote (bar - small brasserie) - 10, rue Charretière - Tel: 05.55.02.13.06
La Pause Orientale (kebab - pizzas – Morocco specialties – sandwiches on demand)
- 12 Bd Victor Hugo - Tel: 05.55.02.14.19
Le Rendez-vous des Chasseurs (traditional cooking) - Le Pont la Planche - Tel:
05.55.02.19.73
La Strada (restaurant - pizzeria) - 5, rue Guizier - Tel: 05.55.02.66.29
Toquenelle (cafeteria) - Centre Commercial Carrefour - Tel: 05.55.02.90.72
La Trattoria (pizzeria) - 8, rue Rouget de l'Isle - Tel: 05.55.02.55.02
Tan Saigon (Asian cooking) - 6, boulevard Marcel Cachin - Tel: 05.55.02.76.10
