The village of VALCABRÈRE lies a short way south of Montréjeau on the main Bayonne–Toulouse rail line. It can be reached by SNCF bus (direction "Luchon") to the hamlet of Labroquère, by the Garonne, and then a short stroll across the river. It's a little place of rough stone barns and open lofts for drying hay, with an exquisite Romanesque church, St-Just (March–June & Oct–Dec Sat & Sun 10am–noon & 2–6pm; July–Sept daily 9am–7pm; €2), whose square tower rises above a cemetery full of cypress trees. The north portal is elegantly sculpted and the apse, decorated with ten recessed arches, is quite remarkable. Both interior and exterior are full of recycled masonry from the old Roman settlement of Lugdunum Convenarum, whose remains are visible at the crossroads just beyond the village. Founded by Pompey in 72 BC, this was a town of some 60,000 inhabitants in its prime, making it one of the most important in Roman Aquitaine. Josephus, the Jewish historian, says it was the place of exile of Herod Antipas and his wife Herodias, who had John the Baptist beheaded. Destroyed by Vandals in the fifth century and again by Burgundians in the sixth century, it remained deserted until Bishop Bertrand, the future saint, appeared toward the end of the eleventh century.Alternate spellings:: France, Valcabrère, Valcabrère, Valcabrere
| 