And here I am back with my travel stories in my black and white series, no pictures. These are with individual posts in my blog. Ok I am going to talk about a large area covering many villages and towns of old, known to my family as they are from there on the father’s side . These are all in Cathar country in the Sud Ouest or south west area of France, in the Tarn department no 81 region of now Occitanie. The towns are Gaillac, Montans,Giroussens, Graulhet, St Lieux les Lavaur, St Paul Cap de Joux, and Castelnau de Montmirail. Therefore, let me tell you about the Tarn in the southwest of France !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
It is a beautiful region best done by car, you get the feel of the local people, the sceneries, the smell of the good wine of Gaillac made mostly with ingenious grapes of the regions. I will try to hit the highlights of each to help in your future travels but of course you can search in my blog for their individual entry for more information.
Let me start with Gaillac, this is a wonderful laidback country town but the center of one of the best wines in France. One of the red grapes Duras is one of the oldest in the world, and the Mauzac for whites is typical of the area. Montans is a very small village, this is where the family has uncles and my wife grew up going to the local wine cooperative nearby. Giroussens, has the magnificent Jardin des Martels, considered one of the most beautiful in France. The Maison de la Ceramique Contemporain at Place Lucie-Bouniol is wonderful to see the different shades and shapes of ceramics. Graulhet, has a wonderful market days in the lower city of ville basse which you descend by steps of stone from the high city or ville hausse, location is Place du Jourdain. The grandparents of my wife used to come here for shopping, and its a major center of tanners for leather goods in France. Saint Lieux lés Lavaur, has an interesting real train ride from the old days, and still kept alive by enthusiasts, the ride is wonderful for the entire family. Its call the chemin de fer touristique du Tarn . Saint Paul Cap de Joux, it has a beautifully built church, and the historical fact that in 1585, Henri of Navarra the future king Henri IV signed the Manifest of Saint Paul with the governor of the Languedoc, Henri Ier, Duke of Montmorency, adding the territory which later came to the kingdom of France. It is here, also, that in 1145 St Bernard de Clairvaux came to preach what would later be the Cathar heresy. Castelnau de Montmirail, this is a fortified town or bastide ,one of the famous one in the southwest of France. It was here that the Catholics of Gaillac took refuge after been expelled by the Cathars.
The shopping here is the wonders of French gastronomy, its wonderful cassoulet,foie gras, sausages, pigeons, are all sublimes. You will love the cuisine Tarnaise! The best for these are the marchés and all towns have it. For good on Saturday mornings then sometimes on Wednesdays and others on Fridays. You can buy ceramics at Giroussens, and leather good at Graulhet at the only stores selling them. For lodgings the choices are endless from hotels to gîtes to rural houses, the organisation Gîtes de France is wonderful here at the Tarn dept and you can narrowed it down further.
Let me tell you briefly on the history of the Tarn! The Tarn is a department 81 of the Occitanie region, crossed by the Tarn river which gave it its name. From very old!!! the territory is in turn integrated into the Roman Empire, the Visigothic Kingdom of Toulouse and the Frankish Kingdom. Having become vassal of the county of Toulouse, the territory of Tarn, named Albigeois in reference to Albi its capital, is ravaged by the battles of the Albigeoises crusade. It was integrated into the Royal domain in 1270 and belong to the province of Languedoc. The fight against Catharism was entrusted to the Inquisition. The country is recovering from its ruins thanks to the work of management and creation of country towns or Bastides. From the Renaissance, we can really speak of Albigeoise renaissance, as the town planning was deeply marked. Shortly after, the Protestant Reformation deeply marked the department. Albi remains anchored in Catholicism while Castres is sensitive to Protestantism. Fighting and massacres took place before peace returns with the signing of the Edict of Nantes. The south of the Tarn comes out transformed, the Protestants having systematically destroyed the previous religious buildings: churches, cloisters, monasteries, crucifixes, etc.
During the French revolution, the department of Albigeois created in 1790 is quickly renamed Tarn in reference to the main river which crosses it. The department provides four battalions of national volunteers to defend the borders of the new Republic. The revolutionary and Napoleonic wars allow rapid rises in rank. At WWI was a tragic event. The number of soldiers dead at the front marks the time. During WWII, the Tarn was subjected to the Vichy regime. In 1942, the southern zone was invaded by the Nazis occupiers. This event and the requisition of young people for the service of compulsory labor feeds the Tarn resistance in recruits. The Maquis of Vabre, the Montagne Noire or the Grésigne greatly complicated the task of the occupants. In 1944, it was part of the departments liberated by the French interior forces. On January 1, 2016, the Midi-Pyrénées region, to which the department belonged, merged with the Languedoc-Roussillon region to become the new Occitanie administrative region.
The Tarn dept 81 on its history: https://www.tarn.fr/mon-territoire/a-decouvrir/histoire-du-tarn
The Tarn dept 81 tourist office: https://www.tourisme-tarn.com/uk/
Hope you have taken note of the above off the beaten paths towns of beautiful Tarn dept 81 of old Midi Pyrénées today Occitanie region. Needless to tell you that I have done my road warrior trips around here several times and if you need to know more let me know. Again, hope you enjoy this unique post on the Tarn of the southwest of France !!! as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 