Bastide de Barran

Barran

A few kilometres west of Auch, on the Baïse, Barran is a bastide founded in 1279 following a paréage between the Count of Armagnac-Fézensac and the Archbishop of Auch; its customs date from the following year. Quickly populated, the town had a municipal school in the 15th century and housed a small Jewish community in the Middle Ages. Battered in the 16th century by Montmorency's Protestant troops, it has nevertheless kept its grid plan, its church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste with its famous twisted spire, and a well-preserved gate tower from its fortifications. Not far away, the château de Mazères, former residence of the archbishops of Auch, and the 16th-century bridge that crosses the Baïse complete an ensemble in which episcopal power has left its mark everywhere.

Getting there : Free access to the village, to the gate tower and to the surroundings of the church. The château de Mazères is reported as a former archiepiscopal residence; visiting conditions not documented. No market documented in the texts.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound