Hideaway in France - gîtes in the Pyrénées near Carcassonne

Chateaux and castles

Cathar Castles

The ruined chateau de Montegur

13 Cathar castles lie in the area between Narbonne and Andorra, built by the Cathar sect in the 12th and 13th centuries to protect them from the crusading forces of Phillippe II of France and the pope. The Cathars supported a life of non-violent, vegetarian abstention, but by 1250 the sect and their castles had been decimated. The castles provide a permanent reminder of their rebellion, the best preserved castles are at:

• Montségur (20 minutes from us)
• Peyrepertuse (90 minutes)
• Queribus (2 hours)

Montségur

The most famous of the Cathar castles, Montsegur was the last stronghold of the Cathars during their final persecution, falling in March 1244. Montsegur has subsequently become a place of pilgrimage for many studying the cathars, the crusades, and the many succeding religious and civil groups. There is a car park at the bottom of the hill above the village, but this still leaves quite a climb up to the stronghold. At the top, the view to the North over the Ariege is superb, and it is incredible to contemplate the effort required to build the castle some 800 years ago.

Chateaux

Chateau des Comtes de Foix (30 minutes)

On a high rock overlooking Foix, and dominated by its three towers, the chateax is open for visits all year round. It is an excellent example of a castle from the middle ages, built in the 11th century, and containing fine relief murals.

Lagarde (10 minutes)

Chateau Lagarde

Although not inhabited, the chateau at Lagarde has been classed as a historic monument since 1883, and each Summer an international youth team is assembled for four months of restoration work on the chateau under the direction of the official preservation group. Year on year the chateau is improving and is in remarkable condition for an 800 year old ruin! For more details follow this link to the official site (in French only).

Churches

There are churches and cathedrals of all scales in the local area, a notable selection are :

• the cathedral of St Maurice in Mirepoix (10 mins from us), which boasts the largest Nave in France!
• the church in the rock at Vals between Pamiers and Mirepoix (20 mins), which was carved out of a large boulder in the 9th century. A tunnel through a narrow cleft in the rock leads you to a pretty church covered with magnificant frescoes of Catalan origin.