Belleneuve can be explored through three different themes: the history of the château, the construction phases of the parish church of Saint-Etienne, and the Tour de Belleneuve walking route, which takes around 1 hour and 30 minutes. This gives you a choice between historic construction phases and a specific walking route when planning your visit.
Château de Belleneuve and its setting
The present-day Château de Belleneuve was rebuilt in 1762 by the architect Jean Antoine Caristie on the site of a château built in 1572. The two dates mark different stages: 1572 refers to the earlier château, while 1762 marks the rebuilding of the present Château on the same site. If you like to get to know a place through its architectural history, you can distinguish between the earlier building and its later reconstruction, rather than attributing the château to a single period of construction. The Château buildings lie west of the village, between the Albane and its tributary, the Ruisseau de Charmey. This setting adds a specific link to the village and its waterways to the historical perspective.
Several construction phases at Saint-Etienne
Different construction phases can be distinguished at the Église paroissiale Saint-Etienne. The nave and the bay beneath the bell tower may date from the early 11th century. This dating is tentative: both architectural elements may have originated in this early period. The choir and transept, by contrast, were built in the 15th century. The church was consolidated in 1898, when its large arcades were enlarged. The sequence ranges from possibly early elements, through the construction of the choir and transept, to a later alteration. Saint-Etienne therefore cannot be reduced to a single year of construction: the information relates to specific architectural elements or a later intervention. If you are interested in church architecture, this progression from a possible early date through medieval construction to consolidation offers a way to explore the church over time.
Walking route and Chapelle d’Arçon
The Tour de Belleneuve walking route takes around 1 hour and 30 minutes. The Chapelle d’Arçon is one of the stops along the route and dates from the 12th century. This makes it a historically dated landmark along the walk. When planning your day, you can allow around an hour and a half for the route, and factor in personal breaks as needed. The chapel offers a different focus from the architectural history of the parish church: it links a stop on the tour with its own historical date.
Putting the historical themes and walking route into context
Your day plan involves two different ways of thinking about time: you can schedule the walking route as a separate activity based on its approximate duration, and explore the architectural history according to the periods that interest you most. This lets you choose the focus of your stay between the walk and cultural themes, without putting the historical aspects in a fixed order.
Discover more destinations: Gevrolles, Manlay, Mesmont, Recey-sur-Ource, Villars-Et-Villenotte, Aloxe-Corton, Courban, Jouey.
For the main travel overview: Cote-Dor.
