Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: Haut Loire

In Brioude, today a town with a population of nearly 7000, St Julien, a Roman soldier who converted to Christianity, is said to have died a martyr's death in 304. From the 6th century onwards, Brioude developed into an important place of pilgrimage. The Dukes of Aquitaine made the town their headquarters for a time. From the 11th to the 12th century, the pilgrimage to the tomb of St Julian flourished. Douglas Adams found "The Restaurant at the End of the Universe" it was open, when I found the "Cafe de l´Universers" it was closed.

In Brioude, today a town with a population of nearly 7000, St Julien, a Roman soldier who converted to Christianity, is said to have died a martyr's death in 304. From the 6th century onwards, Brioude developed into an important place of pilgrimage. The Dukes of Aquitaine made the town their headquarters for a time. From the 11th to the 12th century, the pilgrimage to the tomb of St Julian flourished. La Cigogne Artificium

The Saint-Julien basilica in Brioude was built between 1100 and 1180 as a collegiate church. The architectural structure is influenced by large Romanesque churches such as "Notre-Dame-Du-Port" in Clermont-Ferrand (70 km to the north) or "Saint-Austremoine" in Issoire (30 km to the north), which were planned and built in the same century. The building of the former abbey was demolished after the French Revolution, but the structure of the church (although it has been remodelled in some places over the centuries) is still largely intact. Brioude was a place of pilgrimage very early on, as there was already a "martyrion" over the tomb of St Julien in the 4th century. This building was replaced by an early basilica, which was visited and described by Gregory of Tours (538-594), who wrote about an annual pilgrimage from Avernis (= Clermont-Ferrand) to Brioude. Later, this was a stopover for pilgrims on the way to Santiago, just two days (60 km) from Le Puy (Via Podensis). A wall painting in the side apse As I've already uploaded so many photos from here, I've kept it a little shorter this time