Verfeil lies on a hill 210 metres high, from which the Pyrenees can be admired. Church art, remnants of the fortifications and historic buildings give the town several points of historical interest. There is also a museum and themed trails, offering different focuses when planning a stay.
Church Art and Architectural History
The Église Saint-Blaise was built in the 16th century in the Languedoc style. Its single-nave interior is flanked by side chapels and ends in a seven-sided apse. The apse contains wall paintings by Gabriel Béringuier; the paintings in the nave are by Céroni and depict the twelve apostles. The two sets of images are therefore located in different parts of the church: the depictions of the apostles in the nave and Béringuier’s works in the apse.
Outside the walls of the town centre stands the 15th-century Église Saint-Sernin-des-Rais. It was a subsidiary church of the parish church of Saint-Blaise and is listed as a historic monument. The Citadelle de Verfeil is a 15th-century brick building and one of the remains of a fortified complex. It is probably the same castle that stood in Verfeil during the Albigensian Crusades. Since 27 May 1952, its exterior façades on the west, north and east have been partially listed as a historic monument.
The Porte Vauraise is also part of the history of the former fortifications. The brick gate dates from the late 16th or early 17th century and is one of three town gates; the group also includes the Porte des Clottes and the Porte du Trou du Loup. The façades and roofs of the Porte Vauraise have been partially listed as a historic monument since 26 April 1961. The gates and the Citadelle can thus be viewed as distinct architectural records, without treating their different dates of origin as the same.
Mill and Museum
The Moulin de Nagasse is a watermill in Verfeil. Its existence has been documented since the 14th century; it was rebuilt in 1699–1700. The rebuilding therefore took place considerably later than the first records of the mill. On 8 April 1971, it was added to France’s supplementary list of historic monuments. It is also listed in the national inventory of French mills.
The Musée du Pays Verfeillois preserves artefacts from the old Cathar town. One section is devoted to the “Petites filles modèles” and includes several objects that belonged to Camille and Madeleine. The museum can be visited by appointment; arrange your visit before travelling.
Walking Routes with Different Themes
The 6 km Sentier du Souvenir is a circular route that starts in Verfeil. Information boards along the trail tell the story of Camille and Madeleine de Malaret and their family. The 6 km circular route around Lac de la Balerme has a different focus: the 39-hectare lake can be accessed from the area of the communes of Verfeil and Teulat and provides a refuge for more than 30 bird species. Although the routes are the same length, they differ mainly in theme: family history along the information boards or the landscape around the lake.
Another perspective on the routes is offered by the Conques–Toulouse GR46 route, which passes through Verfeil. Its section in the Coteaux du Girou area passes through eight communes and is a 33 km nature trail. The 6 km circular routes and this longer section therefore differ clearly in their stated distances; the circular routes also each have their own thematic focus.
Discover more destinations: Roquettes, Nizan-Gesse, Bax, Brax, Sajas, Gouaux-De-Larboust, Grenade, Saint-PĂ©-Delbosc
For the overview of the wider area: Haute-Garonne.
