Marvel at these historical feats of human achievement
Spread throughout Occitania, linked by minor roads and overland trails, are the magnificent and mysterious Cathar castles. From the 12th to 13th centuries, the region was entrenched with Catharism, an alternative religious philosophy that shunned conventional Christianity and its materialistic ways. The Cathar Crusade against the people of Occitania lasted for more than forty years, with much persecution and loss of life, and the Cathar castles form a centrepiece to the story. Whilst many of the castles have since been destroyed or fallen into ruin, their sheer inaccessibility and engineering quality has helped ensure their survival over the long years, all of which is good news to today’s enterprising adventurer.
The Cathar Castles are dotted across the local region, and most of them are within an hour or two’s drive of us. They are all worth a visit, and we can particularly recommend Peyrepertuse, Queribus, Puilaurens, Termes, Saissac and Lastours.
If you would like to conquer the Cathar Castles, we recommend you start with Chateaux de Lastours (pronounced lass-tour), which is actually four castles in one, and only twenty minutes away from us. Situated just above the village of Lastours, the three oldest fortifications of Cabaret, Quertinheux and Surdespine belonged to the Lords of Cabaret, who held it in fief from the Trencavels. Chateaux de Lastours received a number of the famous troubadours, and during the Cathar Crusade was one of the most ardent centres of opposition to the Franks, successfully resisting siege many times.