When the river trade collapsed through the devastation of the vineyards caused by Phylloxera, [see 'Wine Production' below] and communication was overtaken, first by rough roads, and then in the last century by a network of trains, with the depopulation that followed the Second World War the village lost its purpose, and – apart from the agricultural work available to the families down on 'the plain' (the adjoining richly fertile river flood-plain) – the houses within the walled 'bourg' emptied, and consequently fell into dis-repair, even collapse.

With the decline of the Roman Empire in the 8th century AD, the Vikings invaded, and the population moved from the valley, where they worked the land, up into the higher, safer levels of the hillside – with the first complete fortress (again probably constructed from wood) on the highest terrace.

More recently, the English arrived in force with their King, Henry, Duke of Normandy, when he succeeded to the throne in 1154 – in 1152 he had married Aliénor Duchess of Aquitaine (now known as Eleanor).

France became reduced to internal war between the two Royal houses – the Plantaganets from England, with their roots in Normandy and Anjou; and the Valois, from Provence.

But in 1449 the tide had begun to turn, as the French adopted a strategy of 'battle avoidance', preferring instead the tactic known as chevauchée, which simply required the armies to surround a town and set up camp, sometimes for months, cutting off all supplies until the inhabitants surrendered.

It is likely that this stone structure was demolished by the inhabitants themselves, sometime after 1453, as a clear demonstration that they had no wish to go on fighting these relentless defensive wars – as also happened with a number of other chateaux in the Périgord.

The building is now used for exhibitions and communal meetings; and the grounds are maintained and managed by a local 'patrimoine' conservation group, the Au Fil du Temps.

Wine in barrel was brought downstream to Limeuil from as far afield as the Massif Central on flat-bottomed 'gabarres', destined for the ocean-going port of Bordeaux.

The larger courreau was built to last 40 or 50 years, and was hauled back to Limeuil from Bordeaux by oxen and men, loaded with salt, fish, and other goods, to be offloaded into the chais buildings – there used to be a great Market Hall on the Place des Ormeaux in the upper village, now long gone.

The window of opportunity for the boatmen to work was therefore limited to only a couple of months in a year; and inevitably the development of roads, and then railways, brought to an end a centuries-old trade.

Inside you may see a darkened original effigy of the Virgin Mary, in a niche in the south wall – now a little damaged, because it was rescued from the depths of the river, where it was discovered, after having been thrown into the waters by Protestants during the Wars of Religion.

The Chapelle was built in 1194 reputedly on the order of King Richard 1 (the Lionheart) of England, as an earthly recompense for the murder by his father, Henry II, of Archbishop Thomas A'Becket in Canterbury Cathedral on 29 December 1170, 24 years earlier.

But derelict houses were steadily bought, to be restored by French, Dutch, English, German, South African, and Australian second-home owners.

The bourg (original walled community) was accepted as a member of the prestigious (entirely non-governmental) organisation Les Plus Beaux Villages de France and restaurants and artisans returned to service the needs of a growing flow of tourists – estimated in 2016 at about 100,000 visitors.

Many events are organised with the tourist visitor in mind – a weekly marché nocturne (an open-air meal, with entertainment, bought from an array of stalls cooking a wide variety of food) during the summer, in the Place du Port down alongside the river; art exhibitions in the Chateau Parc; a small weekly market; an immense Pottery Fair, one of the largest in France; a similarly large antique and bric'a'brac fair; to join the regular artisans – a glassblower, a potter, and a micro-brewery ('brasserie') – as well as local canoeing, horseriding, football, and pétanque.