Travel Guide Béost

The village of Béost fascinates by the beauty of its natural environment. You can't help but marvel as you look up and contemplate the surrounding mountain peaks. Inside this village of 217 souls, the architectural decorations of the houses are typical of the Ossau valley. Attached to the Saint-Jacques-le-Majeur church, the Château de Béost stands out from the landscape thanks to its tower. This is a secular abbey, listed as a historic monument. A stopover for pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela in the 12th century, it became a stately home in the 16th century when it was purchased by Bertrand d'Espalungue. Today, the site belongs to the Los Auzelets association, which has been responsible for its restoration and upkeep since 1951 through volunteer youth workcamps, as well as with groups of young people in difficult social situations and the Scouts de France. The whole building is still marked by history. As for the church, it dates back to the 12th century and was rebuilt in the 15th. The church is remarkable for its marble portal and sculpted tympanum. Dating from the 15th century, it is in the Neo-Romanesque style. Note that the modillions above the portal are inherited from the High Middle Ages, based on their typically naive shapes. The church also has a second door reserved for cagots, the outcasts of medieval society. Finally, it is the only church dedicated to St. James in the Ossau valley, despite its location on one of the routes to Compostela.