Читать книгу Walking in the Dordogne. 35 walking routes in the Dordogne - Sarlat, Bergerac, Lalinde and Souillac онлайн

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The coming of the railway in the 1870s brought this trade to a halt, as it was far easier and quicker to transport heavy goods by rail. The rivermen vainly fought this modern means of transport, even blowing up the railway bridges built across the river. But now, in the 21st century, it is the railways that are in decline, and gabarres are still being made to take tourists on river cruises from the small towns of la Roque-Gageac and Beynac.

Tourist gabarre at la Roque-Gageac (Walk 27)

A short history of the Dordogne

The Dordogne well merits its name as ‘the capital of pre-history’ for it was here, some 30,000 years ago, that our direct ancestors arrived. Known as Cro-Magnon man after the rock shelter near les Eyzies where their bones and stone tools were found, they made their home in caves and overhangs along the Vézère river. As time passed, they began to decorate the cave walls with realistic drawings, paintings and engravings depicting the bison, reindeer and other animals they hunted. Over the next thousands of years, as the climate got warmer and the herds moved north, these nomadic hunters became settled communities tending the soil and planting crops. They gradually learned the skill of metal-working, and their stone tools were succeeded by ones made of bronze and then iron. By 700BC Celtic tribes from the north had spread into the area, building towns and hilltop fortresses, and continually fighting among themselves. One of the most powerful of these tribes was the Petrocorii, who gave the name of Périgord to this region and built a town at the site of the modern Périgueux.