France

Network of fortresses of Carcassonne

WHS Score 0.73
rate
Votes 33 Average 0.82
Show votes
Votes for Network of fortresses of Carcassonne

0

  • Argo
  • Daniel Chazad
  • David Berlanda
  • Ilya Burlak
  • James F
  • Jean Lecaillon

1

  • Adrian Turtschi
  • Aitia
  • Astraftis
  • Caspar
  • ChrisN
  • Christravelblog
  • CugelVance
  • Daniel R-F
  • Dennis Nicklaus
  • GerhardM
  • HaraldOest
  • Inigo Cia
  • Jon Opol
  • Kevin247
  • KngAlaric
  • Lucio
  • Martina Rúčková
  • Marty
  • M. Huineman de la Cuadra
  • MoPython
  • Philipp Peterer
  • Pierre T
  • Piotr Wasil
  • Riccardo Quaranta
  • Van Hung
  • Wojciech Fedoruk
  • Xiquinho Silva
The network of fortresses of the seneschalty of Carcassonne are a selection of seven castles. These mountain castles, also known as ‘Cathar castles’, are located in the southern Languedoc on steep limestone ridges of the Pyrenean foothills and the Montagne Noire. The castles were built in the 13th century as a defence system for the city of Carcassonne and the surrounding area at the border with the Kingdom of Aragon.

Site Info

Official Information
Full Name
The network of fortresses of the seneschalty of Carcassonne (13th-14th centuries) (ID: 6245)
Country
France
Status
Nominated 2026 Site history
History of Network of fortresses of Carcassonne
2017: Added to Tentative List
Added to tentative list
Type
Cultural
Criteria
  • ii
  • iv
Links
UNESCO
whc.unesco.org
All Links
UNESCO.org

Community Information

  • Community Category
  • Urban landscape: Post-medieval European
  • Secular structure: Military and Fortifications
Travel Information
No travel information
Recent Connections
No connections… yet. Propose a connection.
News

No news.

Community Reviews

Show full reviews
First published: 30/03/19.

Dennis Nicklaus

Network of fortresses of Carcassonne

Network of fortresses of Carcassonne (Nominated)

The network of fortresses of the seneschalty of Ca by Dennis Nicklaus

I'm happy to contribute the first review of this area!

I visited 7 of the 8 sites across four days October of 2017. The only one I missed was Termes. I came primarily to see the castle ruins, such as the ones nominated here, but there are so many other beautiful natural and historical man-made places to visit that I was thinking this was my new favorite part of France. If you like castle ruins, this is the place for you! They are best visited with your own car, although be prepared for narrow, winding, mountain-side roads with no guard rails between you and a steep drop off. Visiting in the shoulder season was great because it meant very little traffic, and I had a few of the castles to myself.

Most of these castles are famous partially through their association with the Cathar, or Albigensian Crusades of the early 1200s. (Neither name is particularly appropriate. They were erroneously thought to be centered around the city of Albi and Cathar is a relatively modern name for them.) A lot of the ruins you visit today are of castles built on the spot of the Cathar-era strongholds that were torn down. The castles then served as border posts against Spain, but that function was rendered moot by the 1659 Treaty of the Pyrennes which fixed the border further south I had never heard of any of this history before visiting the area, and it was very interesting to learn. …

Keep reading 0 comments