Paris1972-Versailles2003

The road warrior in me has allowed to see wonderful little villages and towns all over my belle France over the years, More so in my dear late wife Martine region of Seine et Marne dept 77, I happened to be passed close and decided to take a tour which pleasant and another dot to be back, eventually, I found me a couple pictures in my cd rom vault that prompted me to do this post for you and me, Therefore, let me tell you about this is Samois sur Seine !!!  Hope you enjoy this post as I.

The town of Samois-sur-Seine is located in the department no 77 of Seine-et-Marne, in the Île-de-France region of my belle France. Its territory extends over approximately 6 km along the left bank of the Seine river bordering the Fontainebleau forest. It is located 18 km from Melun , 9 km from Fontainebleau, 51 km from Provins, 69 km from Meaux, 73 km from Versailles, and 499 km from my current home, Three departmental roads connect the town to neighboring towns along the D 137, to Fontainebleau; the D 138, to Fontainebleau; the D 210, to Avon, Vulaines-sur-Seine and Samoreau, We came on our road warrior mode from Meaux (native town of my dear late wife Martine-see posts), Taking the rue Faubourg Saint Nicolas bearing right on Rue Aristide Briand crossing the pont neuf bridge over the Marne river bearing right on Rue Cornillon or D360 road out to connect with the A140 highway to connect with the A4 (autoroute de l’Est) dir Paris to exit/sortie 10,1 at Lognes to get on the N104 or La Francilienne beltway highway dir Brie Comte Robert and connect with the A5b highway or A105/N105 to roundabout go thru City center Melun on the D605 then in roundabout bear right into the D606 road go thru two more roundabout but stay on same road ,cross the Seine river on the île Saint Etienne island and continue on the D606 or Avenue Général Leclerc out of town continue on the D138 road reaching the Seine river bear sharp left along the river on Quai des Platreries continue it becomes our final destination on Quai Franklin Rossevelt/Quai de la République !

The quai Franklin-Roosevelt – port fluvial (see pic) or quay – river port is a wonderful walks along the quays strewn with barges and lined with restaurants up to the towpath, The Quai de la République, (see pic) with its riverside stop, restaurants, and old houses, was one of the favorite landscapes of Impressionist painters. The bridge between Samois and Héricy, the wash boats, and the lock have disappeared. Only the dam-keeper’s house on Barbier Island remains.

Other things to see here with more time are The Cellars, 25 rue Auguste-Joly old chapel, convent – the priory – the church – the old presbytery , The Saint-Hilaire Church ,one of the bells, dated 1789, Likewise, the reliquary shrine, in painted wood with six gilded wooden statuettes, surmounted by fire pots and a temple at the top, Inside this church, one can admire a statue of the Virgin and Child, dated from the 14C, In the cemetery, the cross supporting a statuette of Saint Hilaire, patron saint of the parish, in episcopal costume, dated from the 14C, The Château de Bellefontaine was property of Prince Nicholas Troubetskoï, then of Catherine Troubetskoï ,and Prince Nicholas Orloff, Russian ambassador to Brussels, Vienna, London and Paris. He participated in the constitution of the Franco-Russian Alliance. He died at the Château de Bellefontaine on March 29, 1885 Prince Vladimir Nicolaievitch Orloff, son of Nicolas Orloff, died at Bellefontaine, where he had retired in the aftermath of the Russian revolution, The château et l’ermitage de La Madeleine or castle and the hermitage of La Madeleine quickly became a place of pilgrimage. Louis XIV had a pavilion and a basin built there to collect the water from the springs in order to supply a mill below. The Carmelites of the priory of Basses-Loges in Avon settled there, then ceded the hermitage, in 1750, to Louis François Thouron de Morangel. The new owner built, in front of the pavilion built by Louis XIV, two buildings, to which another building was added in 1752. Sold as national property during the French revolution, the whole complex returned to the royal domain under Charles X. The July Monarchy included it on the “civil list” of King Louis-Philippe. It was from the latter that Madame Hamelin, former Merveilleuse of the Directory, spy during the Empire, who became a legitimist under the reign of Louis-Philippe, received a lease in 1830 for the Hermitage de la Madeleine, with the house, its outbuildings, its garden and its park. Madame Hamelin would frequent the Victor Hugo couple, her neighbors, there for many years and attract eminent artistic and political figures of the time, including Chateaubriand, Berryer and Laure Regnaud de Saint-Jean d’Angély. Upon the death of Madame Hamelin in 1851, the Second Republic returned the estate to private ownership, ceding it to the stockbroker Alfred de Tattet, buried in the cemetery of Samois-sur-Seine, a friend of George Sand and Alfred de Musset, who stayed there many times and composed some of their works. Demolished, the château was rebuilt in 1912. After WWII, the château, now privately owned, was the headquarters of SHAPE (Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, SHAPE) for NATO.

A bit of history tell us that the Foundation of the Courbuisson Leper Colony: Having appreciated the services of the Knights of Saint Lazarus in Palestine upon his return from the Crusades, King Louis VII the Younger created a leper colony in Samois-sur-Seine in the 12C. The earliest mention of this leper colony dates from December 1260; a charter of Louis IX exempted the owner of this establishment from paying the tax. The buildings of Saint-Lazare de Courbuisson were demolished in 1739. The marshes and numerous islands on the lower Samois, which were more numerous in the past, provided a privileged location. Today, three can be recognized: Barbiers Island, the largest, in the middle of the river where a dam once stood; Jonchère Island, joined to Barbier Island by the Bridges and Roads Department in the last century; Berceau Island, accessible from the Franklin Roosevelt Quay via the bridges that span the Avau Terre, the arm of the Seine located between Samois and the island; and Thérouenne Island, closer to the right bank of the village of Héricy. A wooden bridge was built between Bas-Samois facing Rue du Bas-Samois, and Héricy, resting in its middle on Jonchère Island. Thus was built one of the longest bridges that ever existed over the Seine as it was more than 300 meters long, between Montereau-Fault-Yonne and Évry. It would be to the Emperor Julian that one would like to attribute its construction, but the long reign of Constantius Chlorus, from 293 to 306, seems much more propitious for the execution of such an important work. Coins with the effigies of Nero, Marcus Aurelius, Constantine I and others have been found at Héricy in tombs; which confirms that the Romans were settled on both banks of the Seine. The presence of this bridge explains why Joan of Arc passed through Samois when she wanted to cross the Seine to go from Vaucouleurs to Chinon. The old Roman bridge between Samois-sur-Seine and Héricy no longer existed, so Louis XVIII decided to rebuild one between these two towns. It was in 1825 that the first bridge of Valvins was inaugurated. ,again in 1866 the bridge was rebuilt in a metal structure. After WWII, the bridge, completely destroyed by the nazis’s army, was completely rebuilt in reinforced concrete, wider and asphalted, to facilitate the ever-increasing traffic.

The village of Samois sur Seine on its heritage : https://samois-sur-seine.fr/informations/vie-locale/histoire/patrimoine/

The Fontainebleau tourist office on Samois sur Seine : https://www.fontainebleau-tourisme.com/en/file/4996566/samois-sur-seine/

The local Gatinais -Val de Loing tourist office on Samois sur Seine : https://www.tourisme-gatinaisvaldeloing.fr/en/file/4996566/samois-sur-seine/

The Seine et Marne dept 77 tourist office on Samois sur Seine : https://www.tourisme-seine-et-marne.fr/en/activities/culture-heritage/picturesque-villages-in-seine-et-marne/4996566-samois-sur-seine/

There you go folks, another dandy ride in my road warrior mode,again, I love to do so by the grandiose Seine river ;meandering my country roads, Always something nice to see in my belle France, Again, hope you enjoy this post on this is Samois sur Seine !!! as I

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!