The Chartreuse de Bel Sito, located on the corner of rue Beaufeu and chemin des Plateaux, occupies a 15-hectare property overlooking the Garonne and the city of Bordeaux.
In the 18th century, Nathaniel Johnston had a magnificent residence built with a façade decorated with a columned peristyle, inspired by the French taste of the time for Italian villas.
After 1846, the estate was acquired by Pierre-François Guestier, who installed a greenhouse there to grow pineapples. The fruit produced on site was renowned for its superior quality to that imported by ships into the port of Bordeaux.
In 1918, part of the estate was transferred to Ciments Français for the exploitation of the limestone quarries located on the hillside, while the rest was granted to the brotherhood of the Brothers of Bétharram for the establishment of a seminary.
Today, the estate lies in ruins, almost entirely overgrown with vegetation and brambles. Only a few hundred-year-old trees bear witness to its glorious past. Despite several redevelopment projects envisaged over the last twenty years, none have come to fruition to date.
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