Pérouges, Market Square

(2 photos)

Since at least the year 1130 the walled village of Pérouges, located about twenty-five miles east of Lyon, has been an outstanding example of a medieval hill-top village, with walls, gates, stone buildings, and uneven cobblestone streets.

The old church, called the Church-Fortress, was really built like a fortress, and while under construction in the late 1460s they had to stop building the church and use the stones to reinforce the ramparts of the city. The Pérouges guide book says that in 1773 twelve shops were open, 124 houses were occupied and only about fifteen were in ruins. Don't know if they had just been through a war, or what else might have caused the ruins.

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Another view.