The farming complex originally dates from the 14th century. It belongs to the hamlet of Les Constancies which also has a small castle down the road.

Most likely the farm building was home to the chief tenant of the lands. The house was built as a luxury residence which can be concluded from the large rooms with high ceilings and large fireplaces.

The ground floor was used as kitchen and living - sleeping was on the floor above.

Not much is known about the house but it is likely that not much changed over the years as all original elements were still in place: beams, roof–timbers, walls.

However the building had been neglected in more recent years and had been crudely converted to house cattle and serve as Tabac drying shed. For this purpose, the floors were lowered (to keep the heat in for the cattle) and crude openings were made in the walls to allow stacking hay & other supply of food for the animals.

The previous owners had also added sheds and barns to the property to house more cattle. These additions were not in style with the old building and were cheap “parpaing” (breeze block) dwellings.

The two Tabac granges on the premises are originally built sheds, and are probably about 100 years old. The one closest to the house is built in a nice traditional style. Although the framing of this building is solid, it needs some maintenance, this will be the next major project to be tackled. The large second shed is a simply built shed, and will remain as is and serve as working and storage shed.

This was the way we found the premises in November 2006.

The main house was totally lost among all the lean-to sheds and stables. It was hard to appreciate the house’s architecture, while it should be such a prominent building with its characteristically tall and uniquely shaped mansard/perigord roof. We had a task to think out a proper plan to renovate to its original state while also achieving the goal of creating a holiday residence with modern facilities and amenities such as swimming pool etc.

After many options were drawn up, the final decision was to cut off all the surrounding buildings and reinstate the main house to its original stand-alone status. Thus drawing attention to the tall house with its massive stone walls, (relatively) small window openings and characteristically shaped roof.

The low level cantilevered roof around the north and west gable ends were added as a compromise between originality and functionality. It looks like an apron around the house, pretty or not is up to each individual to judge, but serves to create shaded outdoor area’s, where dining and recreation area’s will be possible during the hot summers, as well as providing necessary shelter during the frequent but refreshing showers that keeps the Dordogne region so green.

The two Cabanes (holiday cottages) are built in a separate building standing to the side of the main house. They form part of the same complex, but do not distract the attention from the architecture of the main house. They allow sufficient privacy to the occupants to withdraw when required, but are conveniently close to participate in main activities when desired

Building activities have been taking place from may 2007 until to-date. In 2008 we completed the two cabanes so that we could have a place to stay.

In 2009 the main renovation work on the main house were carried out, and the Cabanes were rented out for the first time

Now in 2011 the Whole complex is ready for rental and although there will always be some activities to be undertaken, we are very enthusiastic about the results this far, and we hope that our guests will enjoy this place as much as we have enjoyed creating it.

Download here the pdf with more pictures of the renovation!