France: Auch
Auch is the historical capital of Gascony and the key attraction here is the magnificent Cathedrale Saint-Marie. But Auch is more famous for a person who was born here in 1611 – Charles de Batz de Castelmore aka d’Artagnan, who served as the captain of the musketeers unit under Louis XIV. A little-known French novelist at the time, Gatien de Courtilz de Sandras, wrote seriously fictionalized stories about d’Artagnan, that were later repurposed by Alexander Dumas and fictionalized even further, resulting in Three Musketeers. Fictionalization aside, a statue to d’Artagnan is the main attraction in town, right next to the cathedral.
