Verfeil. Heritage: the door that opens onto Toulouse
At the entrance to the Castrum Verfeillois, the Porte Toulousaine bears witness to the history of the village for several centuries.
In addition to its church listed in the additional inventory of Historic Monuments, its tombs of the Little Model Girls, or its anchorage of yesteryear in the heart of the land of plenty, Verfeil has many heritage gems called “small monuments”. Among them, the gates of the city testify to its rich history.
The Wars of Religion
Access point to rue Tolosane, the former shopping street of the castrum, the Porte Tholozenque, or Toulousaine, owes its name to its orientation towards the pink city. If we do not know how to date it precisely, its construction predates the Wars of Religion. The municipal archives keep track of its restoration in 1591, following attacks by Marshal de Joyeuse. The repair then affected the counterweight of its drawbridge. These documents also evoke nearby with the tower of Gauré, or tower of Castel-Pagés, today disappeared. According to the texts of the time, “on May 5, 1591, the consuls plan to complete the tower begun and that we will hasten to arrange the necessary gunboats there up to the height of ten sides”.
“Freedom and Public Order”
Originally, the city’s coat of arms was displayed on the Toulouse gate. These emblems had been commissioned from the Toulouse sculptor Jan Alaman in 1593, before being hammered during the Revolution. Then, in 1830, on the instructions of the then mayor, Jean-Baptiste Espa, the coat of arms was restored with the inscription “Liberté Ordre Public”, which can still be seen today.
four numbers
Verfeil benefits from the presence of five buildings classified as Historic Monuments on its territory. Beyond the Toulouse gate, the citadel originally had four exits, two of which were fortified. The Toulousaine and Vaurae gates are vestiges of this period.
The third gate that still exists, called the Porte du Loup, is erected near the war memorial.