Aubeterre-sur-Dronne

From the 8th century a church was hollowed out of the chalk cliff here, and the monolithic Saint-Jean, enlarged by Benedictines in the 12th, remains Aubeterre's great sight. The name means 'white earth', after that pale rock face, and the houses climb a hill above a bend of the Dronne. Higher up, Saint-Jacques greets pilgrims bound for Compostela with a Romanesque façade.

Highlights

• Église monolithe Saint-Jean, carved into the cliff
• Saint-Jacques, the old collegiate church with its Saintonge Romanesque façade
• Castle remains: gatehouse, a massive rectangular tower and a Renaissance chapel
• Cobbled, flower-lined lanes above the Dronne

Summary based on Wikipedia and Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA), written with AI assistance.