La Batellerie
Historic Home in Port Sainte Foy
History
La Batellerie was designed by Victor Louis, the architect of the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, one of the most active late 18th century French Neoclassical architects. Built in 1752, this elegant town manor once belonged to a prominent wine merchant, whereby the history of wine transportation began.
Wine barrels from local vineyards were brought and kept on the property's wine warehouse, the "Chai", and then loaded on to "Gabarres", the traditional river boats with a flat bottom allowing them to carry a maximum load in shallow water.
They were transported by the current down to Libourne and on to the Port of Bordeaux by train before exporting them to England and Holland.
Should you wish to know more about the history of La Batellerie you can visit "Le Musée de La Batellerie" adjacent to the manor and you will learn about life in days of yore through the history of the river Dordogne, handcrafted models of trading activity scenes and different types of boats used throughtout the ages. The visit ends on a high note with wine tasting from the appellations of Sainte Foy and Bordeaux at "La Maison du fleuve et du vin".
La Batellerie in 1752
The Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux
