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Templar and Hospitaller Circuit in the Larzac

In the Footsteps of the Legendary Knights
In the south of the Department of the Aveyron, near Millau, five fortified villages on the Larzac plateau represent the largest European concentration of sites associated with the history of the mythical Order of the Templars. The Templar and Hospitaller Circuit around the Larzac includes the medieval villages of Sainte-Eulalie de Cernon, La Cavalerie, La Couvertoirade, Le Viala du Pas de Jaux, and Saint-Jean d’Alcas.

The Templars settled on the Larzac plain in 1140 and remained there for about 200 years, until the beginning of the 14th century, when they were replaced by the Hospitallers. Great builders, skilled in husbandry, they were also wise administrators who gathered together scattered populations. Under the influence of the soldier-monks the Larzac flourished as they cultivated wheat and barley, and bred sheep and horses destined for the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

Their main objective was to contribute to the survival of their brother knights in the East and the upkeep of the great fortresses built to protect the tomb of Christ in the Holy Land. To this end the Larzac, conveniently close to Mediterranean ports for the shipment of money and provisions, served as one of the major bases for the Knights Templar in Europe. The soldier-monks generated huge wealth and radically changed the landscape of this region, and their imprint remains etched on the ramparts and buildings of their towns.

The Larzac Circuit

Templars and Hospitallers, covers 85 km in total. It criss-crosses a land of endless wild landscapes of juniper bushes and closely cropped pastures, grazed by the ewes which provide milk for Roquefort cheese. The vast Larzac plateau extends over 1000 km² and is bounded by the cliffs overhanging the Gorges de la Dourbie and, slightly further away, the Gorges du Tarn.

The Larzac is at the heart of the Parc Naturel Régional des Grands Causses and adjacent to the Parc Naturel Régional du Haut Languedoc and the Parc National des Cévennes. In total these parks represent the largest natural geographical area in France, which today is easily accessible via the A74 autoroute and the Millau Viaduct.

Follow the guide

All the sites on the Larzac Circuit, Templars and Hospitallers, offer guided visits to encourage an understanding of their history and architecture, and also the expansion of tourism and the cultural development programme of this remarkably rich region. To make the most of a visit, audio-guides in French and other languages are available at each centre.

Origin if the Soldier-Monks

The history of the Orders of the Templars and Hospitallers goes back to the First Crusade to the Holy Land. After the conquest of Jerusalem in 1099, certain knights decided to stay and founded the Kingdom of Jerusalem in order to watch over Christ’s tomb. In 1113 the Order of Hospitallers was created with the task of providing shelter and care for Christian pilgrims.

Some years later nine knights, originally from the North of France and their leader, Hugues de Payns, founded the Templar Order in order to assure the security of the pilgrims. This Order, which unusually was both military and religious, received the official recognition of the Pope in 1120. The two Orders went on to organize an important network of Commanderies or estates in the West, such as those in the Larzac, to provide support for the war effort in the Holy Land.




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