In a quiet corner of a small Gascon village with extensive views over the adjoining countryside and a charming view of the listed village church, is this old stone house, privately situated behind high stone walls, entered via an impressive pair of wrought iron gates and surrounded by attractive parkland of 7000m². It is a very appealing property, originally attached to the ancient village ramparts and a substantial part of the ramparts are still standing, creating a striking centrepiece to the grounds.

Apart from the existing house, there also remain for restoration a graciously proportioned former reception room with elegant, tall window openings to two aspects, a large loft and a pretty 2-storey barn which could make a spacious independent dwelling.

The village has no commerce but the large villages of Bassouse and Aignan, both with good basic facilities, including a selection of popular restaurants, are within about 10 minutes' drive. The larger market towns of Vic Fezensac, Plaisance and Marciac are about 15 minutes away.

Accommodation: House - 195m². Loft, former reception room and 2-storey barn (all for restoration) - 260m². Garaging and workshops -  140m².

House

Ground Floor

¨     Impressive double doors with a high, arched fanlight, open into an attractive hall with exposed beams, a colombage (wood timbered) wall, glazed door to the summer terrace, a door to the cellar, a door to a rather antique wc, a flight of wooden stairs to the first floor landing and a flight of 5 stone steps to the main living area.

¨     Main living area, 7.5m x 11m (max) divided visually into a living room and a kitchen.

¨     Living room, 7.5m x 5.7m, with a splendid stone fireplace, magnificent beams, some exposed stonework, a full-height window overlooking the garden a smaller window overlooking the distant views and a particularly attractive floor of terra-cotta tiles inlaid with wooden bands.

¨     Semi-divided from the living room by a terra-cotta-tiled counter is the kitchen, 5.3m x 4m, with exposed beams, terra-cotta tiles, some exposed stonework, 2 windows and a double sink. It is furnished, rather than fitted and the effect is charming.

¨     From the living room a door leads to a short flight of steps which give access to a  potentially splendid salon, 8m x 7.5m, with huge window openings looking south and the same window openings (currently blocked) in the north façade.

¨     From the hall a door opens onto the cellar steps which lead down to a series of 3 cellars with an overall area of approximately 40m² . The first two spaces have concrete floors and house the laundry equipment and the nearly new gas-fired central heating boiler. The third area has an earth floor and forms the wine cellar. There is an external door to the rear garden.

¨     A small lavatory opens from the hall and is of the old-fashioned "hole in the ground" variety - a bit of a collector's item!

First Floor

¨     The elm staircase leads up to a landing, 4.5m x 2.2m, with a wooden floor and an arched window. All the floors on the first floor are constructed with a double layer of floor boarding to improve the sound insulation.

¨     Bedroom (1), 4m x 4m, with a full height window (lovely views), exposed beam, and some  visible stonework.

¨     Bedroom (2), 4m x 4m, with beams, exposed stonework and a window overlooking the front garden.

¨     Bedroom (3), 4m x 3m, with a full-height window, exposed stonework, beams and a wonderful view.

¨     Bathroom with terra-cotta floor tiles, window, bath, wc and a basin in a built-in unit.

¨     Bedroom (4), 6.5m x 3m, a child's study/bedroom, with window overlooking the front garden, beams and exposed stonework.

Second Floor

¨     A staircase goes up to the loft, 12m x 10m, with impressive timberwork.

¨     The loft has sufficient headroom to create more living space and the current owners have already converted part of the space into a small bedroom.

Outbuildings/garaging.

¨     A nicely-proportioned barn, at right-angles to the main house (the corners touch) has a ground floor, 8.5m x 5m with a large east-facing doorway, concrete floor and a wooden open-plan staircase to the first floor. The bottom half of the rear wall is very thick and this was originally the walkway that led around the village ramparts. The first floor has a high 'cathedral" roof, providing plenty of scope for conversion.

¨     Below the potential salon are the former stables, 8m x 7.5m, currently used as garaging and workshop, with a wide garage door to the parking area at the front of the house and another wide opening to a further garage.

¨     Further garaging, 7m x 12m, in a mixture of corrugated iron and stone. This is a less attractive building and leads to a further:

¨     Single, open garage.

Ramparts

¨     These date back to the C12th and comprise a tall, stone double-storey building - possibly a former watchtower -  and a further series of crumbling walls.

Outside.

¨     There are 7000m² of grounds, consisting of lawn, flower beds, mature trees and terracing around the property.

¨     Further afield, on the edge of the village there is a fenced paddock of 5000m² plus 2 parcels of woodland.

¨     The total land that goes with the property is 1.5hectares.

¨     To the front of the property is a wide gravelled parking/turning area with two vehicular entrances.

¨     A pretty south-facing terrace is on the south side of the house.

¨     To the rear of the property is a covered, north-facing "summer terrace" with a roof in timber/Roman tiles and a floor in ancient terra-cotta tiles.