Villeréal

Alphonse de Poitiers, brother of Louis IX, had this bastide built in four years on land from the Montlabour forest, granted to him in 1265. Eight streets meet at right angles around a large square, where the market hall carries an unusual upper storey of half-timbering and cob, and Saturday has been market day since an English charter of 1288.

Highlights

• The covered market hall with its half-timbered and cob upper floor
• The regular grid of a 13th-century bastide around its central square
• Outside stairways leading to the upper floors of the houses on the square
• The Saturday market, set by royal charter in 1288

Summary based on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), written with AI assistance.