For nearly 800 years, in the Hautes-Pyrénées, Ariège, and the Basque Country, the Cagots lived as outcasts.
Accused of spreading contagious diseases, they were long rejected by the French population.
They were considered to belong to an inferior, “animal” race, which excluded them from society.
With their unusual physical appearance, known for being small in stature, measuring between 1.40 m and 1.50 m as adults, they also had unattractive faces, with deformities, heavy eyelids, and premature baldness.
This particular physical appearance meant that the Cagots were as fascinating as they were frightening.
They were forbidden to live in the same neighborhoods, to walk barefoot, to own livestock, or to handle food. At church, they could not enter through the same door as the congregation and had their own holy water font; the priest would hand them the host on the end of a stick. As for occupations, the Cagots worked in jobs related to nature.
For a very long time, many occult beliefs were attached to them. For example, they were believed to possess strange healing powers.
In 1683, Louis XIV freed them from their status as Cagots.
Although the last Cagots disappeared in the last century, it is not uncommon to come across some of their descendants in the southwestern regions...
The Cagots Museum is located in the Arreau Tourist Office and offers a detailed presentation accompanied by original objects.
Cagots Museum
1 rue Saint-Exupère
65240 Arreau
Tel.: +33 (0)5 62 98 63 15
Translated with DeepL.com
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