In search of Saint Martin... and discovering the Brionnais region

Heritage Days 2024 :
The Romanesque church in Vareilles is dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours (316-397). This former soldier, who legend has it shared his cloak with a poor man, became Bishop of Tours after founding the first monasteries in Gaul. He was particularly revered in the Middle Ages. There are many traces of his cult in the Brionnais, a magnificent region of hedged farmland, dotted with Romanesque churches and fine residences.
Les Amis de l'église de Vareilles offers you the chance to follow in his footsteps in the Brionnais: two itineraries departing from Vareilles (44 km, with an ascent of 800 m /
60 km, with a difference in altitude of 1,000 m), which can be done in a day by car or by bike, will enable you to discover our beautiful Brionnais region, its artistic treasures, but also its landscapes, its history and its gastronomy.
From Vareilles to Châteauneuf, as far as St-Julien-de-Jonzy or Semur-en-Brionnais, via St-Martin-de-Lixy and St-Martin-la-Vallée, you can admire Romanesque churches, châteaux, mission crosses and farms, There are also farms, fountains, wash-houses and a post office, bearing witness to the region's economic activity, mines and quarries, lime kilns and brickworks, not forgetting the Charolais cows and their market in St-Christophe-en-Brionnais.
A guide booklet will be given to you as you leave Vareilles. You will be welcomed at the most remarkable sites for guided tours.