Escalier Monumental - Blog Posts

Up the Monumental Stairs at Auch

Some 75 km West of Toulouse, the city of Auch is far away enough for red brick to be far less prevalent in buildings. It developed along the Gers river, with the higher-ups living... well, higher up.

The Monumental Stairs were built in the 1850s when, following a rebellion against Napoleon III's coup installing the Second French Empire, the prefect decided to give the townsfolk something to do (per the city council, "créer des chantiers afin de donner de l'ouvrage à ceux qui en manquent"), rather than just repress. The results were a water and gas distribution network, and the Monumental Stairs, creating a comfortable link between the upper town and the riverside 35 metres below. Later, a statue of d'Artagnan, a musketeer made famous by Alexandre Dumas novels, was added.

Behind d'Artagnan here, rises the Tour d'Armagnac, a 14th-century prison. Unfortunately, it is privately owned and cannot be visited, unlike the neighbouring cathedral, built between 1489 and 1680.

While the back of the cathedral, visible in the top photo, is clearly gothic, which fits the start of construction, the front facade is in a later, classical style. This would fit the timeline, as cathedral building usually started with the crypt and the altar, working outwards, and finishing with the massive entrance and towers. Walking away, further West, we encounter one more figure of the town: Intendant Mégret d'Étigny, who administrated the Auch-Pau area under King Louis XV, and is credited with infrastructure improvements in the region at the time.