Lavaur (; oc, La Vaur) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the Tarn

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

History

Lavaur was taken in 1211 by

Simon de Montfort Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester ( – 4 August 1265), later sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from his namesake relatives, was a nobleman of French origin and a member of the English peerage, who led the ...

during the wars of the

Albigenses Catharism (; from the grc, καθαροί, katharoi, "the pure ones") was a Christian dualist or Gnostic movement between the 12th and 14th centuries which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France. Follo ...

, a monument marking the site where

Dame Giraude de Laurac ''Dame'' is an honorific title and the feminine form of address for the honour of damehood in many Christian chivalric orders, as well as the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system and those of several oth ...

(Lady of Lavaur) was killed, being thrown down a well and stoned to death. The town was also taken several times during the religious wars of the 16th century.

Geography

Lavaur stands on the left bank of the

Agout The Agout or Agoût (; oc, Agot) is a long river in south-western France. It is a left tributary of the Tarn. Its source is in the southern Massif Central, in the Haut-Languedoc Regional Nature Park. It flows generally west through the followin ...

, which is here crossed by a railway-bridge and a fine stone bridge of the 1770s. It lies 36 km southwest of

Albi Albi (; oc, Albi ) is a commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn department, on the river Tarn, 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called ''Albigensians'' (french: Albigeois, Albigeoise(s), oc, albig� ...

and 32 km east of

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

Demographics

Sights

From 1317 till the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

Lavaur was the seat of a bishopric;

Lavaur Cathedral Lavaur Cathedral (french: Cathédrale Saint-Alain de Lavaur) is a Roman Catholic church and former cathedral located in the town of Lavaur, Tarn, France. The cathedral is a national monument since 1911. Eglise Saint-Alain Until the Concordat of 18 ...

, dedicated to Saint Alan, was built for this purpose, dating from the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries, with an octagonal bell-tower. A second, smaller square tower contains a jaquemart (a statue which strikes the hours with a hammer) of the 16th century. In the bishops garden is the statue of

Emmanuel, comte de Las Cases Emmanuel-Augustin-Dieudonné-Joseph, comte de Las Cases (21 June 176615 May 1842) was a French atlas-maker and author, famed for an admiring book about Napoleon, ''Le Mémorial de Sainte-Hélène'' ("The Memorial of Saint Helena"). Life and caree ...

, one of the companions of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

Economy

The town carries on distilling and flour-milling and the manufacture of brushes, plaster and wooden shoes.

Notable residents

* Pierre Fabre, founder of

Laboratoires Pierre Fabre Laboratoires Pierre Fabre is a French multinational pharmaceutical and cosmetics company. The company had a consolidated turnover of 1.978 billion euros in 2012 (including 54% international). It is headquartered in the city of Castres, Midi-Pyrén ...

Étienne de Voisins-Lavernière Marius Étienne de Voisins-Lavernière (17 May 1813 – 20 January 1898) was a French landowner and politician. He was a Deputy of Tarn during the French Second Republic, then Senator of Tarn during the French Third Republic. Early years (1813–4 ...

(1813–1898), French deputy and then senator for Tarn

Miscellaneous

There is a subprefecture and a tribunal of first instance (a lower Court of Justice).