Comtal Castle (France)

The castle Comtal (Count Castle) is a medieval castle in the city of Carcassonne, the largest city in Europe, with its walls still intact. The Medieval Cité is located within the modern city of Carcassonne in the Aude department, of which Carcassonne is the prefecture, in the former province of Languedoc.
Although the cité external curtain is French, and the whole site has been substantially restored, the Comtal Castle has a strong claim to be called a "Cathar Castle." When the Catholic crusading army arrived in 1209 that first attacked Raymond-Roger Trencavel castrum in Beziers and then moved on to his main stronghold in Carcassonne.

The castle was restored in 1853 by the architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc. E 'was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1997. You can visit the medieval Cité (free) and (entry fee) Château Comtal.

Carcassonne was besieged from 1 to 15 August 1209 during the first phase of the war against the Cathars of Languedoc. The siege followed shortly after the massacre of the Crusaders of the entire population of Béziers, an act of terror designed to terrorize the population of the area. Raymond-Roger Trencavel was Viscount of Beziers and Carcassonne - its cities were deliberately targeted by the crusaders, like the Count of Toulouse had joined the crusade itself, obtaining immunity for their land.