La Romieu

La Romieu is a commune in the Gers department, classified as one of the Plus Beaux Villages de France and primarily defined by the Collegiate Church of Saint-Pierre, founded in 1312 by Cardinal Arnaud d’Aux, a native of the village who rose to prominence at the Avignon papal court.

The collegiate complex includes the church with its two octagonal towers, a Gothic cloister of notable elegance, and the cardinal’s tower, all in the warm golden sandstone of Gascony. The name La Romieu derives from romieu, the Gascon word for pilgrim, giving the village a direct etymological connection to the pilgrimage tradition.