www.tourisme-castres.fr. An important textile centre on the River Agout, Castres’ pride and joy is the Musée Goya. Overlooking a lovely formal garden cooled by fountains and hemmed in by neatly trimmed box and yew, the museum is laid out in the 17thC Palais Episcopal which it shares with the Hôtel de Ville. There are three major paintings by Goya on show, including a Self-Portrait, plus a series of engravings. A fine collection of works by other 16th-17thC Spanish artists features Murillo, Ribéra and Velasquez amongst its treasures.

As for the rest of the town, the tourist office can provide a map and walking tour which takes about 35 minutes. One of the best stops along the way is the Hôtel de Nayrac with its graceful brick fa√笵cade decorated with pediments and a frilly fringe of tiles beneath the roof. A minute away, the Musée Jean-Jaurès, opened by Mitter and in 1988, celebrates the life of Castres’ most famous son, the father of the French Socialist party, assassinated in 1914. Next cut down to quai Tourcaudière for a look at the newly restored Maisons d’Agout hanging over the river on the opposite bank. Medieval tanners and dyers once worked from their open stone cellars. On market days, place Jean-Jaurès fills with a colourful open-air market. Stallholders preside over bunches of pink-white garlic, enormous beef tomatoes, fresh figs, melons, homemade baskets and honey. Pick up delicious snacks from the dried fruit and nut stall, and stock up on dried herbs, pot pourri and lavender.