So this is it. Our stay in Constant has ended and we are required to depart by 9.30 am. We cook our final breakfast and pack our belongings. The trip to our next destination will take around 4 hours so we have plenty of time and I have something in mind. I first head back to the Dordogne, hopefully to see something I've missed but immediately I'm informed it will be closed today. I press on regardless in the hope of seeing something, but the entrance to Ascenseur a Poissons du Barrage EDF de Tuilieres closed. Built in 1909, the Tuilieres Dam is one of the oldest hydroelectric sites in the Dordogne Valley. An experimental site for fish migration, it is equipped with unique facilities notably its fish lift.
It was a long shot but it's not the main reason for the detour today. We continue west towards Bergerac partially tracing our steps from Thursday. We soon find the missing link in this tour at the crest of a hill: A real chateau with its intriguing history. The Chateau de Monbazillac is a 16th-century Renaissance chateau with period furniture & wine cellar and has witnessed France's most troubled times. This is most evident as you walk around the chateau. To, at last visit a period chateau is a great result but for the admission of 11.75 Euro there is wine tasting as well. The chateau boasts a restaurant, a wine shop and an excellent information centre relating to local wine production and the Monbazillac brand. The chateau is known for its production of sweet tasting wine. The wine's sweetness is assisted by a purposely cultivated fungus known as 'noble rot'.
The château was built between 1550 to 1582 by Charles d'Aydie de Riberac (1527-1584). In 1607, Louis de Bouchard d'Aubeterre, a Huguenot, bought the chateau. Pierre Barraud then owned the castle from 1666. In 1777, Francois Hilaire de Bacalan (1728-1804) purchased the chateau.
Inside the chateau is some graphic detail of the effect of the the French Wars of Religion, a series of civil wars between French Catholics and Protestants (called Huguenots) between 1562 and 1598 mainly concentrated in the southwest of France. Between two and four million people died from violence, famine or disease directly caused by the conflict, and it severely damaged the power of the French monarchy. For so long persecuted, the Protestants have only in the last 200 years or so benefitted from full religious tolerance.
The chateau has been listed as an historic monument since 1936 and has been the property of the 'Cave Cooperative de Monbazillac' company since 1960. Today, the castle is a museum where visitors can learn about wine production and local history. As it's well past midday, we must move on. It's four hours until we reach our destination today.
Our route takes us north to Angouleme then along better roads to Poitiers, then finally crossing the Vienne to the village of Avoine near Chinon. Here we have booked an apartment for two nights but moving in proves far from straightforward. The apartment is administered remotely meaning there is no staff on site. To make matters worse the building is not even named or the individual flats numbered. The issue here is that while I have instructions as to how to get access, it's all in French. After a phone call that gets me nowhere, a friendly neighbour figures things out and can move in. After that things soon settle down in a pleasant flat that has a well-equipped kitchen. It's a step completed towards our return to the UK.

Source: Visit, Wikipedia