The Château d'Aguilar (

Languedocien Languedocien (French name, ), Languedocian, or Lengadocian () is an Occitan language, Occitan dialect spoken in rural parts of southern France such as Languedoc, Rouergue, Quercy, Agenais and southern Périgord. It is sometimes also called Lang ...

: ''Castèl d’Aguilar'') is a 12th-century

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

, one of the so-called Cathar castles, located in the '' commune'' of

Tuchan Tuchan (; ) is a commune in the Aude department in southern France. Population See also * Fitou AOC * Corbières AOC * Communes of the Aude department The following is a list of the 433 Communes of France, communes of the Aude Departmen ...

in the

Aude Aude ( ; ) is a Departments of France, department in Southern France, located in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region and named after the river Aude (river), Aude. The departmental council also calls it " ...

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

'' of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Architecture

The design of the castle is an example of the practical military thinking guiding the 12th century architecture. The castle consists of an inner

keep A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residen ...

built in the 12th century, surrounded by an outer pentagonal fortification from the 13th century. This fortification is oriented such that its point guards the side most favourable to attackers. The keep and the inner hexagonal fortification is flanked at each corner with semi-circular guard towers, each equipped with archery outlooks. The strategic location of the castle on a hill overhanging the plain of

allows control and protection of the

Corbières Massif The Corbières Massif ( ; ; ) is a mountain range in the Pre-Pyrenees. It is the only true foothill of the Pyrenees on their northern side. Geography The Corbières are a mountain region in the Languedoc-Roussillon in southeastern France, loc ...

. Despite this, the castle is easily accessible from the plains because of its relatively low elevation of 321 metres. There is a small underground chapel of Saint-Anne below the keep.

History

The earliest building at this location belonged to the count of

Fenouillèdes Fenouillèdes (; ; ) is a French comarca and a traditional Occitan-speaking area in the '' département'' of Pyrénées-Orientales. The capital of the comarca is Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet (''Sant Pau de Fenolhet''). Fenouillèdes has been part ...

since 1021. In the 13th century, the keep that had replaced earlier buildings was bequeathed by the

viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is ...

s of

Carcassonne Carcassonne is a French defensive wall, fortified city in the Departments of France, department of Aude, Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. It is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the department. ...

to their vassal, the Counts of Termes. In 1210, it was invaded and occupied by Simon de Montfort, whose soldiers took and held the owner Raymond de Termes in a dark dungeon in the Carcassonne. In 1246, a royal garrison was installed to supervise the Aragon frontier. the castle was returned in 1250 to

Olivier de Termes Olivier de Termes (1200 – 12 August 1274) was a knight from the southern French region of Termes, Aude. He was raised as a Cathar but eventually converted to Catholicism in a move that would help restore peace to his homeland following the ravage ...

, the son of Raymond who had made peace with king

Louis IX Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), also known as Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death in 1270. He is widely recognized as the most distinguished of the Direct Capetians. Following the death of his father, Louis ...

, for his good services during his crusade in the Holy Land. In October 1260, Olivier de Termes sold the castle to Louis IX, along with the villages of Termes, Davejean and Vignevieille. Now on the border between the Kingdoms of France and Aragon, Tuchan experienced many skirmishes and battles during the following centuries.Cathares.org
/ref> In 1525, the castle fell into the hands of a Spanish army. It is likely that the castle was then dismantled and not restored. When the border was pushed back to the south of

Roussillon Roussillon ( , , ; , ; ) was a historical province of France that largely corresponded to the County of Roussillon and French Cerdagne, part of the County of Cerdagne of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is part of the region of ' ...

by the treaty of the Pyrenées (1659), the castle gradually lost its strategic importance, and was eventually abandoned in 1659. Today it is in decrepit condition. Since 1949, it has been listed as a ''

monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

'' by the

French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture () is the ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of France in charge of List of museums in France, national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and pro ...

Pictures

File:100520-Aguilar-01.jpg, Château d'Aguilar File:100520-Aguilar-02.jpg, Château d'Aguilar File:100520-Aguilar-03.jpg, Château d'Aguilar File:100520-Aguilar-04.jpg, Château d'Aguilar File:100520-Aguilar-06.jpg, Château d'Aguilar File:100520-Aguilar-07.jpg, Château d'Aguilar File:100520-Aguilar-11.jpg, Château d'Aguilar File:100520-Aguilar-08.jpg, View from Château d'Aguilar to the Corbières File:100520 Aguilar-Aussicht.jpg, View from Château d'Aguilar to the Corbières File:100520-Aguilar-05.jpg, View from Château d'Aguilar to the Corbières, in the background the Pyrenees

References

External links

The "Commune de Tuchon" and Aguilar
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aguilar, Chateau Buildings and structures completed in the 12th century Castles in Aude Ruined castles in Occitania (administrative region) Monuments historiques of Aude Catharism