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Further Afield

Bastide Towns

Bastides are fortified towns built in medieval France starting the 13th Century. All bastides have a grid layout and a central market square with a covered weighing and measuring area. Bastides began to appear as feudalism began to wane in medieval France, and were an attempt by landowners to generate revenues from taxes on trade rather than tithes (taxes on production). Farmers who elected to move their families to bastides were no longer vassals of the local lord -- they became free men. They were encouraged to work the land around the Bastide, which in turn attracted trade in the form of merchants and markets. The lord taxed dwellings in the bastides and all trade in the market. Ease of tax collection is the reason for the grid layout (property taxes) and the covered weighing and measuring area in the marketplace.

See Agen Tourist Office for a description of Bastide Towns.

List of Bastide Towns in Tarn et Garonne

• Albias
• Angeville
• Beaumont de Lomagne
• Castelsagrat
• Castelsarrazin
• Caumont
• Cordes Tolosannes
• Donzac
• Dunes
• La Bastide St Pierre
• La Bastide du Temple
• La Française
• Larrazet
• Lauzerte
• Mirabel
• Molières
• Monclar de Quercy
• Montalzat
• Montauban
• Montech
• Montjoi du Quercy
• Négrepelisse
• Puylagarde
• Réalville
• St Nicolas de la Grave
• St Sardos
• Septfonds
• Valence d'Agen
• Verdun s/ Garonne
• Verfeil s/ Seye
• Verlhac Tescou
• Villebrumier

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Wine Tours

• Thornon
  
• Penne D'Agenais
  
• Cahors
  

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Mediteranean

About three hours drive away.

• Narbonne
  
• Perpignan
  An extra hour down the Autoroute.

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Spain and Andorra

Three or four hours drive away - so a long day out. Better to stay for a night.

• Spain
  
• Andorra
  
• Figueres - Dali
  

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Atlantic

A couple of hours drive

• Bordeaux
  
• Water
  
• xxxx
  

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Pictures

Swimming Lake at somewhere	Swimmin Lake at somewhere else
Bergerac Cathedral	The Minack Theatre

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