| The first of the string of châteaux that line the Dordogne east of St-Cyprien is Les Milandes (daily April–June, Sept & Oct 10am–6pm; July & Aug 9.30am–7.30pm; €7.50), perched high on the south bank. Built in 1489, it was the property of the de Caumont family until the Revolution, but its most famous owner was the Folies Bergères star, Josephine Baker, who lived here from 1936 to 1968. The stories surrounding the place are more intriguing than the Château itself, which contains a motley collection of Ms Baker's effects. Further along on the same side of the river, the Château de Fayrac was an English forward position in the Hundred Years War, built to watch over Beynac, on the opposite bank, where the French were holed up. All slated pepper-pot towers, it's unfortunately closed to the public, but you can visit the ruins of the Château de Castelnaud (Feb–April & Oct to mid-Nov daily 10am–6pm; May, June & Sept daily 10am–7pm; July & Aug daily 9am–8pm; mid-Nov to Jan daily except Sat 2–5pm; €6.40), a little to the south of Fayrac and the true rival to Beynac in terms of impregnability – although it was successfully captured by the bellicose Simon de Montfort as early as 1214. The English held it for much of the Hundred Years War, and it wasn't until the Revolution that it was finally abandoned. Fairly heavily restored in the last two decades, none of the architecture can match the views up and down the valley, though it does boast an extensive collection of weaponry and armour from the Middle Ages.
Pages in section ‘Milandes’: Josephine Baker.
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