Triumphal Arch in Orange, France
The Triumphal Arch in Orange (near Avignon) is about 22 meters high and 21 metres wide, and consists of three arches. It is located on the ancient Via Agrippa (the Roman trade route from Lyon to Arles) and features numerous ornate carvings relating to the history of the conquests of Augustus, the Roman supremacy over [...]
Following Charlemagne’s army in Agen
We’ve looked before at some of the bastide towns (medieval ‘new towns’) in the north of the Lot-et-Garonne department of southern France. This time we head to the south of the same department, and across the border into the Tarn et Garonne department. The ‘Pays Agenais’ as it is known is the region around the [...]
Fortified villages – Larressingle
Most Francophiles have heard of Carcassonne, the incredible fortified city in Languedoc-Roussillon. Incredible for two reasons – the size and quality of the medieval fortifications, and the knowledge that in the 19th century it was scheduled for demolition, and was only saved at the last minute by the newly appointed ‘Inspector of Historic Monuments’. But [...]
Piled up houses
In centuries gone by, like across much of Europe, France had large areas that were covered with dense woods and forests. Although France still has a great deal of forest (increasing each year, as agricultural land in inhospitable regions gets abandoned), there are also many areas that we now see as open farmland that were [...]
Prehistoric France
France has more than its fair share of prehistoric monuments – although in truth it is the north around Carnac (Brittany) that has the greatest concentration of menhirs and dolmen. But the south has its occasional treasures as well. in addition to the sprinkling of standing stones found in many parts of France there are [...]