Toulouse, city in southern France, capital of Haute-Garonne Department, on the Garonne River and the Canal du Midi. It is a major commercial, transportation, and manufacturing center, noted for the production of aircraft and aerospace equipment. Other products are chemicals, clothing, electrical machinery, and farm implements.
Places of interest in Toulouse include the large Romanesque Basilica of Saint Sernin (begun 11th century), which contains the tomb of Saint Thomas Aquinas; the Gothic Cathedral of Saint Étienne (begun 12th century); and the Church of Notre Dame la Blanche (restored in the 16th century). The city also contains many mansions in the Renaissance style; these include the Hôtel Felzins, the Maison de Pierre, and the Hôtel d'Assézat. The latter mansion is the site of the Fondation Bemberg, a collection of art from the last five centuries. The mansion also serves as the seat of the Académie des Jeux Floraux, a literary society (1323) that holds an annual poetry contest with prizes of flowers made of gold and silver. Also of note are the imposing Capitole (18th century), formerly the city hall; the universities of Toulouse I, II, and III (1229, reorganized 1970), as well as a Roman Catholic institute (1877) and a polytechnic institute (1970); a museum of fine arts, housed in a former Augustinian convent (14th century); and an astronomical observatory (1733).
