The Cathar fortresses : Citadels of the cliffs

The land of the Cathars

Puilaurens castle

During the 12th century, a Christian religion which originated in the Middle East, developed around Toulouse, Carcassonne, Béziers and Albi: Catharism. It stigmatised the practices of the Catholic ministry. In 1202, the Pope launched a crusade against the Cathars, declared heretics. Impregnable fortresses were built on the summits of Corbières: Aguilar, Termes, Quéribus, Puilaurens and Peyrepertuse.

The conflict for the independence of the South against the Kingdom of France, lasted for 35 years and ended after the fall of Quéribus and Puilaurens castles, by the unification of the regions of Languedoc (Oc-speaking regions) in the Kingdom of France, Cerdagne and Roussillon staying under the crown of Aragon.

The entry into the kingdom of France introduced a new architectural style characterised by the Gothic arch. Although, the big “French-style” churches are the cathedrals of Béziers, Narbonne and Carcassonne, the majority belong to Gothic "languedocien" tradition, a more austere Romanesque style, as seen in the abbeys of Fontfroide or Valmagne. The royal military engineers who created Aigues-Mortes, the fort of Saint-André in Villeneuve les Avignon, gave the City of Carcassonne the appearance that we know today.

The Cathar fortresses, perched on pinnacles of rock, guarded the border with Catalonia. When besieged during the crusade against the southern French heretics, which started in 1209, the lords of these castles refused to surrender. In 1255, Chabert de Barbaira handed over the last, Quéribus, to the French army.

Puilaurens

Perched 697 metres high, Puilaurens Castle (Aude) was founded in 986 and controlled the whole of the Fenouillèdes valley. It belonged to the abbey of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa and survived until the end of the Cathar crusades, led by Simon de Montfort. He failed to force its surrender, thanks to the castle’s impenetrable defences: the 12th century keep and strong ramparts.

Quéribus

Built in the 11th century at a height of 730 metres, Quéribus Castle (Aude) dominates the Roussillon plain. Straddling the departments of Aude and Pyrénées-Orientales, the fortress of Quéribus is thought to be the final bastion of Cathar resistance, defeated in 1255.

Peyrepertuse

This site is exceptional. The lower 11th century castle, which houses the church of Sainte-Marie and the governor’s lodging, is connected by a fortress wall to the upper 13th century castle, which is made up of the chapel and San Jordi keep. The lower castle was built as a stronghold in the 11th century by the Kings of Aragon. Peyrepertuse became French in 1240 after the Cathar crusade.

The Cathar era left its mark in Aude - at the Aguilar, Peyrepertuse, Puilaurens and Quéribus citadels around the invincible fortress of Carcassonne. In the 12th century, the Cathars rejected the Old Testament and Catholic rites, founding their own religion and “pure” church, which earned them the nickname “the perfect ones”.