Carcassonne Medieval City, Languedoc-Roussillon, France
Medieval Carcassonne is a fortified town rather than a castle – and perhaps the most impressive fortified medieval town to be found. Which is ironic, because in the middle of the 19th century it was in such bad repair that it became scheduled for demolition, to be saved by the efforts of the local mayor, who called in the new ‘historic monuments’ department to take a look.
The city was saved, the well-known architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc took the renovation project in hand, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Due to its position on historical routes across France, the location has been occupied for more than 5,000 years and was an important center from 2,500 years ago onwards. It was first fortified by the Romans and given the name Carcaso. After the Romans were driven out Carcassonne fell into the hands of various of the invading tribes, and became more fortified and developed, especially after falling into the hands of the powerful Viscount Trencavel.
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