Hôpital des pèlerins de Pons, Medieval pilgrim hospital in Pons, France.

The Hôpital des pèlerins de Pons consists of a main building with a sick hall and a priory church on either side of a Romanesque porch that spans the old Saintes–Bordeaux road. The porch has two barrel-vaulted bays and a central rib-vaulted bay, with segmental arches and half-moon oculi above. The cream stone facade features a tall pointed window with blue glass and a round arch leading into the vaulted passage.

Geoffroy III de Pons founded the hospital in 1160, outside the town walls, so that pilgrims arriving after the gates closed could be received at any hour. It was run by priors chosen jointly by the Bishop of Saintes and the lords of Pons, and Geoffroy III chose its priory church as his burial place. The Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem took over in the 16th century, after the Wars of Religion left the church pillaged and the buildings damaged. Abandoned in 1818, the complex was restored between 1998 and 2004.

The name hôpital carried a wider sense than hospital: the canons gave lodging, food and spiritual help to the poor of any origin, and took in abandoned children left in niches made for the purpose at the entrance. Pilgrims' graffiti, horseshoes and initials, are still cut into the wall surfaces beside the Romanesque portals.

The site can be visited and allows guests to explore the medieval spaces. It is wise to plan ahead and check opening hours, especially if you intend to take a thorough tour.

The Romanesque portals sheltered under the porch still carry graffiti that pilgrims scratched into the stone over the centuries: horseshoes, initials and other marks. Look for them on the wall surfaces beside the blind arcades.