La Cit de Carcassonne Location Carcassonne of Southern

La Cité de Carcassonne

Location Carcassonne of. Southern two cities. The actual inside of • It located is incomposed a is region France called Cité Languedoc • is. Carcassonne a cityofin France. the fortress and Ville Basse opposite shore of Spain, the Roussillion and the is bordered by on thethe Mediterranean Sea, Aude River. They. Mountains. are connected by a bridge. and the Pyrenees

• Carcassonne is one of the most complete and best restored medieval walled cities in Europe. • It has a rich history that goes back thousands of years. • It has fifty-two towers and two walls that add up to a total of three kilometers of ramparts. The Medieval City is small - only two kilometres around between the two fortified walls.

Ancient and Roman Times • The Romans renamed theestablished city Carcaso • Carcassonne was first in and the it became an. Century important frontier in thea Empire. Eighth B. C. It wascity located few miles from its present site. • The cityaway was abandoned for unknown reasons in the • Sixth Century B. C. moved to its During the Iron Ageand it was known aspresent Carsac. location.

The Visigoths and the Dame of Carcas • It was once again invaded in 759 by the Francs. An • After the fall of the Roman Empire Carcaso was taken interesting legend arose from this siege which is not over by the barbarian Visigoths and its name was changed really based on fact. again to Carcasona. • Carcasona was captured by the Arabs in the eighth century A. D.

The Trencavel Dynasty • The. Trencavels culture of the were troubadours the feudal lords originated of Carcassonne in Languedoc and the much surrounding of their songs areaare during written thein twelfth Occitan. and thirteenth centuries. • The Chateau Comtal was constructed during this time as well as the suburbs Saint-Michael and Saint-Vincent. • The region was of autonomous of the Capetian Dynasty in France. Languedoc was known to be very tolerant towards religious minorities and it was very prosperous.

Catharism-the Great Heresy The Perfect Main Beliefs • • Woman Catharism first appeared inwho theand East, it was strongly • The“Perfect” material world was evil was created by Satan. • The were those had renounced the were allowed to become Perfect. established in the Balkan Peninsula by the year 1000. It material world and vowed to live an ascetic life. They gave • God sent Jesus in the form of a spirit to tell man that • The Perfect wandered the country and preached migrated north through Italy to France. up: they could be saved. their faith. • The teachings Jesus were misinterpreted and falsified • Property • Very few of thoseof who were attracted by catharism and the Orthodox Church was itbuilt ononthese errors. became one of the Perfect, unless were their • Meat, eggs, or any other product of animal • The only Hellextreme was theasceticism material world that posed man lived in. deathbed, when no longer intercourse any problem. • Taking oaths • Believers could enjoy the society of the perfect without being perfect themselves.

The Main Characters of the Albigensian Crusade Raymond Pope King. Innocent Louis IXIII II • • • Raymond. Simon de. VI Montfort Raymond Trencavel ––––Count King Pope from of. Raymond France Toulouse 1198 -1216. who and Roger. Trencavel Leader of the Papal Son of Roger, nominal eventually overlord gained of At he. Beziers, tried forces during the he first attempted toto retake – –Viscount of much ownership of Carcassonne. Langudoc. ofheretics convert the Crusade. theand city and led a siege Albi Carcassonne andthe – Was sympathetic to thethe using public debates. against the city with – He was granted – Was not a Cathar, but established apeople Cathars sheltered help ofand theland of his the –sympathized Repeatedly ordered Trencavel after with their seneshalsy. them, although he tried suburbs. This Raymond of Toulouse victories. cause and sheltered the ––Perfect to. Rebuilt play both the sides. city and destroyed ofthe to rout the Cathars. inout hismuch cities. He was reviled by created the Bastide. city. many After promises populace and – but He was eventually no results, constantly had Innocent to cannonized. III called fordefend a crusade. invade and his territory.

Beziers – Beziers is a city close to Carcassonne. – It was the site of the first major battle of the Albigensian Crusades. "Show mercy neither to order, nor As a result, every man, woman, and age, nor to massacred sex. . Cathar or – to During the siege, the in papal forces gave the child was the city. Catholic, Kill them all. . . God will residents the opportunity to safely leave. know his own. . “ They refused. ~Arnold Aimery

The Siege Of Carcassonne • Raymond Roger retreated from Beziers to the more heavily fortified Carcassonne. • The city held out for two weeks until its water supply became strained due to an influx of refugees from the two suburbs. • Simon de Montfort offered the Count parley and he accepted. – The Count agreed to be arrested for treason in exchange for the enemy agreeing not to massacre his city. – He died in his own dungeons a few months later under mysterious circumstances.

Aftermath The Siege 1240 the lands that he • Simon de Montfort was of granted • King Louis. He IXspent began a lifetime massivedefending rebuildinghis conquered. his • Raymond Roger’s son, Raymond project. land from her original owners and the continuing the II, launched a siege against city – He also destroyed the two suburbs to prevent Crusade against the Cathars. with the support of the people of future uprisings. – His son was a weak ruler and the land was Saint Michel and Saint Vincent. – He created a new suburb in 1248 called the eventually ceded to the Frankish crown. “Saint-Louis Bastide” in its place. • –He failed left the. Philippe city’s defenses Two of hisbut successors, le Hardi and in ruins. le Bel continued the restoration and Philippe expansion of the Cité.

Fate of the Cathars • The Crusades did not succeed in wiping out Catharism. • Pope Innocent III established the very first Papal Inquisition as a response to the Cathars. – The Inquisition was given almost unlimited power to supress the heretics. – The Cathars were not well organized and did not believe in violence. They were thus easy prey and were wiped out by the end of the thirteenth century. – The Inquisition would go on to crush out any form of heresy it encountered in the ensuing centuries.

The Saint-Louis Bastide • Since thenisit known has rebounded in fortune and • The Bastide as the Ville Basse (Lower until recent it outstripped Town). It wastimes founded in 1248. the Cité in prosperity. –economic Two churches were built called Saint-Michel and Saint. Vincent to commemorate the suburbs that were destroyed following the crusade. • The Bastide became very prosperous and a center for the drapery industry in Languedoc. • Its fortune quickly changed during the fourteenth century when a combination of the Black Plague, famine, and the Hundred Years War devestated the city. – It was rebuilt and some defenses were added as well a bridge that connected it to the Cité.

The Decline of the Cité • The economy of the inner city began to decline as the years passed. • Napolean I downgraded the importance of the fortress and the seat of the Church to the Bastide. • The population dwindled to several hundred and they were wretchedly poor. – The Bastide was as prosperous as the Cité was decrepit. – A fierce rivalry developed between the two faces of Carcassonne. – The Cité slowly fell into ruin.

Restoration • A push was made in the 19 th century to renovate the ruined city. • The architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc devoted his career to rebuilding the ramparts, towers, and important buildings. – He was lauded for his work, however there was heated controversy over some of his designs.

Carcassonne Today • The Cité was named an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997 – Carcassonne is now the second most popular tourist draw in France outside of Paris. • Many directors have used the cité as a backdrop or inspiration for their films. • There is an annual medieval festival that draws thousands of visitors throughout the world. • The people have benefitted from the economic boost of the tourism.