St Urcisse

Saint-Urcisse, a chateau in the heart of the countryside

Saint-Urcisse is one of those places you just stumble across when you’re travelling through the Tarn countryside. It’s a charming village that looks out over the landscape surrounding the River Tescou and makes for a very enjoyable stopping point as you wend your way through this peaceful part of the world.

Saint-Urcisse was originally founded in 1256 as a bastide village in the Albi region. Many different periods of Albi’s history were marked by wars and conflicts, all of which profoundly changed the appearance of Saint-Urcisse, which is now a little agricultural village in the midst of which sits a château and a church that was rebuilt at the end of the 17th century.

The chateau

Built on the site of an ancient 14th century stronghold, today the chateau is in private hands and now shows off a style that was influenced by Renaissance Paris. The gardens underwent a substantial renovation process in the 19th century, producing three separate parts – one in the French style, another (which is private) in the English style, and a third section which is more exotic in feel. An orangery and a pond by the low terrace were completed at the end of the 19th century.

The church at Saint-Urcisse

Standing in the centre of the village, the church was rebuilt in 1750 in the gothic style that was much appreciated at the time. In 1874 a shrine in the shape of a polygon was added. The chancel is decorated with frescos by the 20th century painter Nicolaï Greschny, who’s well known for his ecclesiastical iconography.

The Notre-Dame du Cayre church was destroyed in the 18th century and then rebuilt in 1806.