Towns and villages
The new towns, founded over a century and a half, between the 13th and 14th centuries, are built on rigorously geometrical plans. There are a dozen of them in the department, including one at Trie-sur-Baïse. With its typical collegiate church and covered market in the center of a square square, this bastide has undergone many upheavals, including looting and pillaging during the Hundred Years' War. The Carmelites founded a monastery there in 1365 and the church, topped by a massive bell tower, still visible, marks a golden age of construction in 1444. The town hall, an imposing Empire building, houses on its first floor a hall with Baltard-style extensions. Remains of the city's fortifications are still visible.
On the road to the watermills
From the mountains to the plains, water swirls around with ardor and many villages have charming washhouses and fountains. For centuries, it is however its force which served the Bigourdans and the rye, corn, wheat or walnut mills ensured the daily life of the inhabitants. Installed along the streams, rivers and creeks to use the power of water to grind, press or crush, there were several hundred of them dotted around the territory. Today, many of them have been abandoned, but some valleys have insisted on perpetuating the sound of the millstones at work. Restored, they regularly open their doors to the public. The Ribère mill in Mauvezin, those of Gèdre-Dessus, the Debat mill in Saint-Lary-de-Soulan, the Traoué mill in Montaigut or the Mousquère mill in Sailhan are good excuses to discover the department. From the valley of Aure to the Toy Country, hikes are possible around each of them.
Saint-Sever-de-Rustan
If Saint-Sever-de-Rustan still manages to move us today, it is first of all for its architectural ensemble. The history of the village is as lively as the water that crosses it, the remains of a rampart opens on its course by a brick door, and if it really begins in the year 800 with the creation of its famous Benedictine abbey, the site was frequented since the Neolithic! What you will remember is this incredible and monumental religious monument, which is more like a palace than a monastery and whose Mansart-like architecture even earned it the nickname of "Little Versailles of the Southwest". Destroyed then rebuilt many times, it is a summary of the history of art. All the styles can be found there and are mixed in an aestheticism which runs from the Romanesque plenitude to the opulence of classicism with baroque touches and delicate mouldings. Classified as a historical monument since 1914, this jewel is far from being the only one and Saint-Sever-de-Rustan is faithful to its past as an ancient bastide which was born in 1297. In its picturesque streets, it has preserved its half-timbered houses which combine wood, cooked and raw bricks and even the brown pebbles of the Arros. The Romanesque church of Saint-Pierre-aux-Liens with a Latin cross plan completes the place where you will find a unique aura, to be seen and savored as a journey through time.Castles
They are the vestiges of bygone eras and retain a power of fascination intact: the 39 castles, including 13 fortified castles, and the six manor houses in the Hautes-Pyrénées bear witness to a flamboyant past when protection and warfare were the order of the day. The one in Lourdes is one of the most emblematic and it is in the footsteps of Charlemagne himself that you will walk through it. Situated in the heart of the town, which it dominates on its rocky outcrop, this medieval fortification from the Roman period is simply magnificent. At night, its luminous keep rocks the city and its beauty almost overshadows the castle of Mauvezin, whose exceptional condition due to a rigorous restoration and history have forged its reputation. In 1083, it is mentioned in writings and if it was certainly built in the XIth century by the counts of Bigorre, it is Gaston Fébus who restored it by raising in particular a keep of 37 meters towards 1380. It was a long time a true pledge of peace before the Hundred Years' War made of it an object of ferocious disputes, of which a siege led by the duke of Anjou in 1373. The fortress was used as a prison during the Wars of Religion and today its stone walls house six rooms with a folklore and history museum.
In the Aure valley you will find the Tour de Cadéac, one of the last vestiges of the 12th century castle of Tramezaygues, and in the heart of the Barousse, the small medieval village of Bramevaque preserves the vestiges of a 12th century castle which, if not the best known, are worth visiting. At the top of the hill, the remains of the keep are enthroned in the centre of a terrace where a wall opens behind which a staircase runs around rooms lit by a loophole. The remains of a Romanesque chapel complete this magnificent site which is set in a breathtaking environment.Religious architecture
It is said that faith moves mountains: with 700 religious buildings scattered throughout the valleys, in the Hautes-Pyrénées, it would be well advised not to. This spiritual heritage bears witness to the fervour that reigned in the department and to the strong influence of the Catholic Church in its society. The 550 parish churches, 150 chapels and 10 abbeys make up a magnificent architectural heritage. A hundred of them are from the Romanesque period, visible in the monasteries and priories which impose a respectful silence by their size. The pure and simple nave, imposing forecourt, sculpted capitals, columns and arches will impress you, as will the abbey of Saint-Savin, a jewel if ever there was one. The abbey of Escaladieu is one of the sites not to be missed and its architectural developments are equalled only by the gardens that jealously surround it. Nearly 60 Gothic monuments are spread out in the north and centre of the department and the upper Adour valley. The interior frescoes are true works of art and many of them have the baroque exuberance that the Ferrère brothers, natives of the department, distilled into their hearts.
