10 Amazing Facts About the French Medieval City of Carcassonne

The medieval walled city of Carcassonne sits in the luscious valley of the Aude river—the gap between the Pyrenees and the Massif Central.

Slate roofs glint in the sun atop 13th-century towers that dominate the horizon.

Surrounded by mountains and vineyards, the scent of pine shrubs, spicy herbs, and sweet flowers is carried on the cool winds. Known as the garrigue (gah-REEG), it is the signature scent of the south of France.

View of the medieval city of Carcassonne amongst vineyards. Photo Harry. Photo Dennis Jarvis
View of the medieval city of Carcassonne amongst vineyards. Photo Harry. Photo Dennis Jarvis

Here are 10 amazing facts about this medieval wonder that you might not know.

1. The walls of the city are 1.9 miles (3 km) long

Cité de Carcassonne. Photo erjk.amerjka
Cité de Carcassonne. Photo erjk.amerjka
Aerial view of Carcassonne. Credit Chensiyuan
Aerial view of Carcassonne. Credit Chensiyuan
The Walls of Carcassonne. Photo Vicente Villamón
The Walls of Carcassonne. Photo Vicente Villamón

2. The city walls have 52 massive towers

Towering above. Photo candi...
Towering above. Photo candi…

The fortified city has a concentric design having two outer walls with 52 towers and barbicans, designed to prevent attack by siege engines.

The shining turrets of Carcassonne. Photo Ad Meskens
The shining turrets of Carcassonne. Photo Ad Meskens

3. A Roman tower housed the Medieval Inquisition

The shallow-pitch terracotta tile roofs and red brick layers identify these towers as Roman, one of which is called “The Inquisition Tower”.

The Medieval Inquisition’s purpose was to root out and prevent the spread of Cathars and Waldensians—followers of religious movements that were denounced by the Catholic Church.

Gallo-Roman Towers of Carcassonne. Photo José Luiz
Gallo-Roman Towers of Carcassonne. Photo José Luiz
La Délivrance des emmurés de Carcassonne by Jean-Paul Laurens, 1879
La Délivrance des emmurés de Carcassonne by Jean-Paul Laurens, 1879

Extracts from a letter written around 1285 by the Consuls of Carcassonne to Jean Galand, a Dominican Inquisitor at Carcassonne, describe what conditions were like in the Inquisition Tower:

… you have created a prison called “The Wall”, which would be better called “Hell”. In it you have constructed small cells to inflict pain and to mistreat people using various types of torture. Some prisoners remain in fetters … and are unable to move. They excrete and urinate where they are … Some are placed on the chevelet ; many of them have lost the use of their limbs because of the severity of the torture … Life for them is an agony, and death a relief. Under these constraints they affirm as true what is false, preferring to die once than to be thus tortured multiple times.

4. Carcassonne was the first fortress to use hoardings in times of siege

Overhanging wooden ramparts attached to the upper walls of the fortress provided protection to defenders on the wall and allowed them to shoot arrows or drop projectiles on attackers beneath.

Two of the towers that are on the right side of the entrance. Photo Dennis Jarvis
Two of the towers that are on the right side of the entrance. Photo Dennis Jarvis
A view of eh wooden hoarding from inside the castle walls. Photo Dennis Jarvis
A view of eh wooden hoarding from inside the castle walls. Photo Dennis Jarvis

5. Edward the Black Prince failed to take the city during the Hundred Years’ War

During the 1355 Great Raid by the English in the Aquitaine–Languedoc region, Edward “the Black Prince” crippled southern France’s economy through the practice of chevauchée. This involved burning and pillaging enemy territory to reduce the region’s productivity.

When the Black Prince passed through Carcassonne, his army razed the Lower Town, but couldn’t take the extremely well defended walled city.

Carcassone’s position as a key defensive fortification on the border with Spain remained until the Treaty of the Pyrenees was signed, which effectively pushed the border further south—diminishing Carcassone’s strategic importance.

The 16-year-old Black Prince at the Battle of Crecy by Julian Russel, 1888
The 16-year-old Black Prince at the Battle of Crecy by Julian Russell Story, 1888

6. In 1849, the City of Carcassonne was nearly demolished

Not the news this Carcassonne gargoyle wanted to hear.

Carcassonne was struck off the roster of official fortifications under Napoleon and the Restoration.

It fell into such disrepair that the French government decided that it should be demolished, causing an uproar among local citizens.

Mayor of Carcassonne, Jean-Pierre Cros-Mayrevieille, and writer Prosper Mérimée, inspector of ancient monuments, led a successful campaign to preserve the walled city.

The architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc was commissioned to renovate the entire city.

Carcassonne. Photo Vicente Villamón
Carcassonne. Photo Vicente Villamón

7. The French poet Gustave Nadaud made Carcassonne famous

Cité de Carcassonne. Photo Javier Medina
Cité de Carcassonne. Photo Javier Medina

He wrote a poem about the lament of a peasant man who dreamed of seeing Carcassonne before he died, but was never able to visit. His poem inspired many others and was translated into English several times.

Carcassonne by Gustave Nadaud

8. In 1898, Pope Leo XIII upgraded Carcassonne’s Gothic Church to a Basilica

The minor Basilica is entirely inside the city walls. Famed for its stained glass windows—some of the oldest in the south of France—the Basilica of Saints Nazarius and Celsus is a national monument.

Basilica of Saint-Nazaire (11th - 14th century), the jewel of this medieval city, Carcassonne. Photo Dennis Jarvis
Basilica of Saint-Nazaire (11th – 14th century), the jewel of this medieval city, Carcassonne. Photo Dennis Jarvis
Basilica of Saint-Nazaire is noted for its stained glass windows. Photo Dennis Jarvis
Basilica of Saint-Nazaire is noted for its stained glass windows. Photo Dennis Jarvis

9. The city was named after a fairy-tale princess

In the 8th century, Carcassonne was under Saracen rule and besieged by Charlemagne’s army. Lady Carcas, a Saracen princess, fed a pig with wheat and threw it from the city walls, fooling Charlemagne into thinking the city had abundant food. Charlemagne lifted the siege, and in celebration, Lady Carcas rang the city bells. Thus, the city was named Carcassonne, meaning “Carcas rings.”

Although Lady Carcas is fictional, such oral traditions were commonplace in the 12th century and perpetuated in writing in later centuries. Similar legends link a number of historical characters in other times and places with similar ruses.

10. Carcassonne vies with Mont St Michel for the title of most visited monument in France

The citadel was restored at the end of the 19th century and in 1997 it was added to UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites.

Carcassonne Castle. Photo BrianRS1
Carcassonne Castle. Photo BrianRS1
Carcassonne bridge. Photo App1990
Carcassonne bridge. Photo App1990
Carcassonne. Photo Rhino Neal
Carcassonne. Photo Rhino Neal

References and credits
Featured image: Alain Mach
Wikipedia.org
Living in the World’s Greatest Walled Cities—Lindsey Galloway for the BBC
The Inquisition Against the Cathars of Langeudoc