The Dordogne is famous for its Pigeonnier buildings and Le Suquet has a large one built on the end of the Grange (barn). It's an impressive building converted into a lovely apartment with 3 floors. The existence of this building suggests that Le Suquet was the residence of a local noble who was granted permission to build this symbol of power next to the main house. Our pigeonnier has the same beautiful symbols of St Jacques as the main house.
Today, there is no sign of pooh or gunpowder. It's just a nice place to stay with its own private courtyard.
"The French word for dovecote is pigeonnier or colombier. it was called a colombier or fuie from the 13th century onwards and pigeonnier until the 19th century. In the Middle Ages, particularly in France, the possession of a colombier à pied (dovecote on the ground accessible by foot), constructed separately from the corps de logis of the manor-house (having boulins from the top down), was a privilege of the seigneurial lord. He was granted permission by his overlord to build a dovecote or two on his estate lands: the dovecote rights (droit de colombier). Although they produced an excellent fertilizer (known as colombine), the lord's pigeons were often seen as a nuisance by the nearby peasant farmers, in particular when sowing new crops. In numerous regions (in France) where the right to possess a dovecote was reserved solely for the nobility (Brittany, Normandy, etc.), the complaint rolls very frequently recorded formal requests for the suppression of this privilege and a law for its abolition, which was finally ratified on 4 August 1789 in France." from Wikipedia
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