ClasséArchaeological site · protected 1951Site archéologique de la GraufesenquePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Claude Valette · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Hôtel de Sambucy · Photo: TCY · CC BY 4.013historic monuments
History of Millau · Monuments historiques
13 historic monuments, the oldest from prehistory
The Culture ministry lists 13 historic monuments in Millau: 6 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 7 inscrit (the second level). That’s 5.9 for every 10,000 residents, more per resident than 74% of compared French towns; the median compared French town has 2.5. We have photos of 13 of them.
Monuments historiques
13
5.9 per 10,000 residents
median compared town 2.5
median compared town 2.5
Classé
6
the highest protection
Inscrit
7
the second level
Oldest part
Prehistory
of any listed monument
Homes before 1919
11%
median compared town 7.4%
In pictures
Millau in 13 photos
Nearly every classé monument, photographed. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Lavoir de l'AyrolleClassé
Site archéologique de la GraufesenqueClassé
Pont-VieuxClassé
Tour du BeffroiClassé
Église Notre-Dame de l'EspinasseClassé+8See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its license; names open the monument’s page.
How old
How old Millau’s monuments are
Each monument once, by the oldest part the list dates.
Prehistory & Antiquity to the 4th c.2
Middle Ages 5th–15th c.6
16th to 18th century Renaissance to Revolution2
19th century 1801–19003
20th century and later since 19010
8 of 13 dated monuments have parts from before 1500. The oldest dated: Site archéologique de la Graufesenque (Prehistory).
Map
Where Millau’s monuments stand
Every monument with a point on the ministry’s list; the larger, darker dots are classé.
ClasséInscritWithin 400 m of Lavoir de l'Ayrolle
4 of 6classé monuments stand within 400 m of Lavoir de l'Ayrolle, with 9 of the town’s 13 monuments.
Tap a dot to open the monument’s page: its record, photo and the monuments around it.
13 monuments by protection
6 Classé7 Inscrit
Classé is the higher protection: any work on the building needs the State’s permission. Work on an inscrit building must be declared to the State in advance. Around both, building work in sight of the monument (usually within 500 m) needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
Points as the ministry gives them: a monument spread over several plots has one point.
Classé
6 classé monuments in Millau
Classé is France’s highest protection for a building, held by about a third of the monuments on the list. 2 of the 6 are protected in part only (a façade, a roof, a room). Each card opens the monument’s page.
Classé
Classé
ClasséChurch · protected 1945Église Notre-Dame de l'EspinassePhoto: Patrick Boyer · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséTown house · protected 1992Hôtel de SambucyPart of the building is protectedPhoto: TCY · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséInscrit
7 inscrit monuments in Millau
Inscrit is the second level of protection: the building is worth keeping, and any work on it must be declared.
InscritArchaeological site · protected 1998Site archéologique du dolmen 3 de Saint-Martin-du-LarzacPhoto: Reby jf · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritTown house · protected 1999Ancien hôtel de Sambucy de MiersPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Père Igor · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritTown house · protected 1978Ancien hôtel de GalyPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Juliofsanguino · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Inscrit
InscritHouse · protected 2013Maison Marquès-VerdierPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Père Igor · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritTemple · protected 2015Temple protestantPhoto: Gustave en résidence · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritMarket hall · protected 1978Halle, place des HallesPhoto: ArnoLagrange · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
What’s protected
Houses and homes are the largest group in Millau
Each monument under the main domain Mérimée gives it.
Houses & homes4
Religious buildings2
Public & civic2
Bridges & engineering1
Industrial1
Houses & homes: 4 of 13 monuments (31%). 2 are religious buildings, 1 of them classé.
Mérimée files each monument under one main domain: a château with its chapel counts once. 3 have no domain on the list.
When protected
Millau’s list has grown since 1931
Monuments by the year they were first protected.
192019401960198020002020
First protected, in 1931: Lavoir de l'Ayrolle and Tour du Beffroi. 3 have been added since 2011.
Born before 1900
19 people born in Millau before 1900
Their lives on one line.
Raimond Mairose
Durand Louis de Bourzès
Jacques Antoine Brouillet
Gilles Louis Antoine De Grandsaigne
Jean-Baptiste Solignac
Louis Philippe de Gaujal-Saint-Maur
Théodore Richard
Eugène de Planard
Louis-Jacques-Maurice de Bonald
Jean-Aimé de Levezou de Vezins
Louis Testory
Émile Aldebert
Léopold Constans
Émile Aldy
André Balitrand
Joseph Malet
Justin Vialaret
Domenica Walter Guillaume
Jean Cotereau
1500165018001950
JB
Jean-Baptiste Solignac1773–1850 · French general
EP
Eugène de Planard1783–1853 · French playwright
LJ
Louis-Jacques-Maurice de Bonald1787–1870 · Catholic cardinal
JV
Justin Vialaret1883–1916 · French association football player
JC
Jean Cotereau1898–1979 · French politician
RM
Raimond Mairose1400–1427 · French cardinal
DL
Durand Louis de Bourzès1742–1817 · French politician
JA
Jacques Antoine Brouillet1743– · French politician
Everyone born in Millau Birthplaces from Wikidata, checked against Wikipedia.
Towns its size
Millau has the 5th most monuments of 41 towns its size
Compared French towns of 21,300 to 22,800 residents, by historic monuments.
Millau13
#5 of 41for monuments per resident (5.9 per 10,000). Most per resident: Abbeville, Auch and Villeneuve-sur-Lot.
The median town of these has 3. 8 of the 41 have none.
Neighbors
Historic monuments in the towns around Millau
| Town | Residents | Monuments | Classé | Protected area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Millau | 22,044 | 13 | 6 | — |
| Saint-Affrique | 7,941 | 4 | 2 | — |
| Sévérac d'Aveyron | 4,026 | 12 | 5 | — |
In brief
Millau in brief
Millau’s oldest monument, Site archéologique de la Graufesenque, dates from prehistory. In all there are 13 historic monuments, 6 of them classé, including Hôtel de Sambucy. Its classé monuments cluster together: 4 of them stand within 400 m of Lavoir de l'Ayrolle.
Only 4 of the 41 towns nearest its size have more historic monuments. Of the 19 people born here before 1900, the best known include Jean-Baptiste Solignac (1773), Eugène de Planard (1783) and Louis-Jacques-Maurice de Bonald (1787). Beyond that, per resident it sits near the middle of compared French towns; and 11% of its homes were built before 1919, close to the 7.4% in the median compared French town.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Monuments historiques. France protects buildings at two levels. Classé, the higher (about a third of the list), means any work needs the State’s permission; inscrit means work must be declared to the State in advance. The Culture ministry’s Mérimée base lists every protected building, and this page counts them.
- Partly protected. Many entries protect part of a building only (its façades and roofs, a staircase, a painted room). Each counts as one monument, like a fully protected one.
- Where a monument is counted. In the commune named on its protection, moved to today’s commune where communes have since merged. A monument listed for several communes counts in each.
- Sites patrimoniaux remarquables. Since 2016 France’s protected historic areas (the former secteurs sauvegardés, ZPPAUP and AVAP) share one name. Inside one, building work follows the area’s plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
- What isn’t here. Protected objects (furniture, organs, paintings), old buildings with no protection, UNESCO World Heritage listings and labels such as “Plus Beaux Villages de France” aren’t on this list, so this page doesn’t count them.
- No History Grade yet. Everything on this page is described, not graded: France’s History Grade isn’t built yet.
Questions about the history of Millau
How many historic monuments are there in Millau?
The Culture ministry lists 13 historic monuments in Millau: 6 classé and 7 inscrit.
Which monuments in Millau are classé?
6, among them Site archéologique de la Graufesenque, Pont-Vieux, Tour du Beffroi, Église Notre-Dame de l'Espinasse, Hôtel de Sambucy and Lavoir de l'Ayrolle.
How old are the monuments of Millau?
The oldest parts of its listed monuments date from prehistory.
When were monuments in Millau first protected?
The first in 1931, the latest in 2016.
How old are the homes in Millau?
11% of its main homes were built before 1919 (median compared French town: 7.4%).
France has no History Grade yet: this page describes, it doesn’t grade.
Sources: Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée base on POP (immeubles protégés au titre des monuments historiques), October 2026 · Ministère de la Culture, sites patrimoniaux remarquables, October 2026 · INSEE, census 2023 (main homes by build period) · Wikidata and Wikipedia (people born here) · Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata (photos of the monuments, each with its own credit and license) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 4, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.