Tours Road
The Road of Tours to Santiago de Compostela
The history, legends, development and infrastructure of the stations along the French Tours Road or Via Turonensis through Poitiers, Saintes and Bordeaux to the shrine of Saint James at Compostelaa
Via Turonensis
The Road of Tours would have drawn pilgrims from Paris and the shrine of Saint Denis along the valley of the river Loire past Orléans and the relics of Saint Euvert towards the great pilgrimage abbey of Tours and the tomb of one of the most celebrated saints of the medieval world – Saint Martin.
The Relic of Roland’s Olifant at the Basilica of the Blessed Seurin
Roland’s Olifant, the ivory horned trumpet he had sounded at Roncevaux was the most precious relic kept at the shrine of Saint-Seurin.
Their companions carried their precious remains as far as Belin and buried them with the greatest care
Belin was a legendary location of the burial site of Frankish warriors who fell at Roncevaux.
Saint Etienne de Tauriac
The church of Saint Etienne de Tauriac is situated a short distance from the Tours Road. It lies near the right bank of the Dordogne River midway between the major Compostelan halts of Blaye and Bordeaux.
The Tomb of Roland
The greatest relic of the Carolingian past, the tomb of Roland, was to be found at the abbey church of Saint Romanus of Blaye on the Tours Road.
Parthenay-le-Vieux
The town of Parthenay-le-Vieux lies approximately thirty miles west of Poitiers and the great shrine of Saint-Hilaire on the Road of Tours,