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Origin and history

The Tower of the Cordeliers is an octagonal brick bell tower, in southern Gothic style, built in 1512. It belonged to a Catholic convent built between the 15th and 16th centuries on the site of a 14th century church. Inspired by Toulouse's bell tower, it is one of the few remaining elements after the Protestant destructions of 1562 and 1577.

During the Revolution, the tower was transformed into a watchtower. Today, only the bell tower and the western wall of the convent are preserved. The bell tower, listed as a Historic Monument in 1921, features broken arched bays, limestone columnettes and a brick structure typical of southern religious architecture.

The original church, rebuilt from 1416, had a vaulted nave of warheads and side chapels, as evidenced by the departures of still visible vaults. Protestants deliberately spared the bell tower and the west wall in 1577 to stabilize the tower. The property now belongs to the commune of Pamiers.

Architecturally, the tower is distinguished by its two levels of bays framed by committed columns, its oculi losangées and its spiral staircase. A broken arched bay remains at the base, vestige of the original entrance. The west wall, alternating bricks and pebbles, shows no opening, reflecting local construction techniques.

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