Before the Romans arrived, two Celtic tribes ruled the land.

1. The Volcae Arecomici
2. The Volcae Tectosages

In 1791, the Languedoc was sliced up into eight departments:

The Ardeche
Aude
Gard
Haute-Garonne
Haute-Loire
Hérault
Lozère
Tarn.

Nobles from the then kingdom of France in the north, led by Simon de Montfort, used their declared intention to help the Catholic Church in its attempt to stamp out the Cathar heresy as a pretext to attack the ruling seigneurs of the Languedoc.

From the 11th century onwards, the southern nobility had shown a broadminded tolerance towards troubadors and Cathar heretics alike, welcoming them into their castles. During the Crusade period, these "castles" offered asylum both to the Cathars harried by the Inquisition and to the dispossessed overlords.

When in 1659, the treaty of the Pyrénées redrew the border further to the south, realigning it from peak to peak from one end of the Pyrénées to the other, the castles were neglected and later were abandoned and fell into ruin.

The term "Cathar Castles" was first used to describe these strongholds as a reminder of this period in their history. The archaeological evidence in fact tells a rather different story; these bastions were either reinforced or entirely replaced by new ones, but after the Crusade.

Today, in the Lauragais area of the Aude that was the heartland of Catharism, and throughout the narrow stretch of land that separates the Pyrénées from the Central Massif range, immemorial landmarks have survived that continue to bear witness to what was a crucial period in the history of the Languedoc.

The History of Carcassonne

The oldest sign of habitation in this area dates from the 5th century BC. In 122 BC the Romans invaded both Provence and Languedoc, proceeded to fortify the central fortification, which they called Carcasso, and occupied the region until the mid 5th century AD. At this juncture, Spain and Languedoc fell to the Visigoths hailing from the banks of the Danube. The walled city of Carcassonne remained under Visigoths sway from 460 to 725, when in the spring of that year, the city was taken by the Saracens. The Saracens named the city Carchachouna. After the death of Charlemagne, the feudal period began. Between 1082 and 1209 the city of Carcassonne wielded tremendous influence for 130 years under the dynasty of the Trencavels, Viscounts of Albi, Carcassonne, Béziers and Nîmes. These same prosperous times also saw the swift rise of the Cathar religion - better known, perhaps as the Albigensian heresy, founded on a doctrine of Manichaean dualism and bitterly opposed to the contemporary decadence of Catholicism.

Raymond Roger Trencavel, the young Viscount of Carcassonne was sympathetic towards this heresy and offered Cathar heretics refuge on his estates. When Pope Innocent III mounted his crusade in 1209, the young Trencavel found himself in the direct line of fire: on August 15th of that year, after a two-week siege, Carcassonne fell and the Albigensian heresy was over. The city and its landed possessions were assigned to the military commander of the Crusade, Simon de Montfort. On this latter's death in 1218 he was succeeded by his son Amaury, who was incapable of retaining control over his lands. He relinquished them in 1223 and the following year handed over his Languedoc possessions to King Louis VIII.

Carcassonne became a fortress city under the successive reign of Louis IX, Philippe le Hardi and Philippe le Bel, it developed its present day aspect. In 1262 a new borough started to emerge from the flatlands on the west bank of the river, and this would become the "Bastide Saint-Louis". But in 1355, Edward, Prince of Wales destroyed it by fire. It was immediately rebuilt. In spite of the bridge which links the mediaeval walled city and the "Bastide Saint-Louis" the two have led very different existences. While the new town bustled with activity, the walled city consolidated its role as a royal stronghold.

Today, from the top of the City's ramparts, the visitor can look out towards a variety of landscapes:

• The "Ville Basse", built from the XIII century onwards, with its striking features such as religious buildings, the vestiges of ancient ramparts, private mansion houses and also pedestrian precincts and green squares.

   

• To the North, the Black Mountains, foothills of the Massif Central, offer wooded hills which provide a refreshing refuge in the heat of summer.

   

• To the South, the Pyrénées, preceded by the Corbières, outline themselves against a blue sky where the sun shines 300 days a year.

   

• To the West, the rich Lauragais land makes up a multicoloured palette with its meadows, vineyards, fields of corn and barley, sweet corn and sunflowers.

Between the Black Mountains and the Pyrénées, in this passage connecting the two seas, where the Aude river and the Canal du Midi draw close together and lose sight of each other and then separating, Carcassonne, the look-out post, serves as a link for economic and cultural exchange, and the communication of ideas and stories.

The Castle of Arques

This castle was built in the northern style yet located in the centre of the south - it was constructed between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries by Gilles, grandson of Pierre de Voisins, a close companion in arms of Simon de Montfort. There is a thick wall enclosing a central tower and keep.

The style is that of the Kingdom of France; the stone is that of Corbières. It is truly a work of art, a redeeming product of a time of grief.

The castle is located near the village of Rennes-le-Château, about 40 km south of Carcassonne and at the heart of the Corbières.

Opening hours

• Open from 10 am

• October and April; until 5 pm

• May, June and September; until 8 pm

• July and August; until 10 pm

• Open during weekends and school holidays - November, December, February and March

The Castle of Peyrepertuse

The castle of Peyrepertuse, by the extent and the quality of the buildings, forms the largest ensemble of fortifications of its type in the Languedoc and offers the finest example of medieval military architecture in the region.

The castle of Peyrepertuse

Peyrepertuse is an enormous citadel that covers 7,000 square metres. Invested unsuccessfully by the troops of Simon de Montfort in 1216, in 1240 it was captured by the royal army after a siege of just 3 days.

St Louis perfected the fortifications and built a second castle of the west on the Roc St-Jordy. Structures surviving from the twelfth century are the old keep, transformed into a cistern, and a small circuit of walls. The Church of Ste. Marie (also twelfth century) is contained within the ramparts.

The castle is situated near the village of Duilhac and the Verdouble river, 35 km west of Perpignan.

Visiting

• The castle may be visited every day.

• Average duration to climb the hill and tour the ruins is 90 minutes.

During the Albigensian Crusade, the château governed by Chabert de Barbaira, housed many heretics and dispossessed knights (faidits). In 1255, eleven years after Montségur, this citadel of Cathar resistance fell into French hands.

An excellent example of military architecture, the château is famed for its polygonal keep and Gothic-style hall, of which the dome rests on a sturdy circular palm-phanged pillar.

Today a circular staircase leads to a terrasse on the summit of the keep.
Perched at 728 metres, it overlooks the fantastic Fenouillèdes landscape, the Roussillon plains and the Corbières.

The château lies on Cucugnan village land, celebrated for Achille Miros famous Occitan tale retold by Alphonse Daudet in his Letters from my WindmillÈ.

In the centre of the village you will find Achille Miros Little Pocket Theatre.

The Castle of Usson

A small castle, near the village of Usson-les-Bains above the valley of the Aude, towards the south of the Cathar region. The surrounding landscape is typified by rocky hills with sparse vegetation, and no other signs of habitation in the immediate vicinity.

This region forms part of the foothills of the Pyrénées, the often impenetrable barrier between France and Spain. Usson is 81 km south of Carcassonne by road.

In this lonely place, the ruins stand out starkly against the usually deep blue sky, buffeted by the relentless winds that gust around this exposed place.

Beneath the castle, the Bruyante stream flows endlessly around the foot of the castle walls.

Visiting

• The castle may be visited every day.

• No payment is required.

The Castle of Lordat

Perched 400 metres above the valley of the Ariège, the Castle of Lordat has a commanding position on a small, steep hill that overlooks the surrounding undulating landscape for many miles.

The castle of Lordat

Lordat is a tiny village at the extreme southwest of the Cathar region, close to the Sault Plateau and the Pyrénées foothills - 70 km from Carcassonne directly, but nearer 120 km along the winding roads of this region.

This part of France is hot and dry during summer but often very cold and snow-bound for months during winter. These extremes of weather have taken a heavy toll on the castle, and now only vestiges of the once-formidable structure remain.

Visiting

• The castle may be visited every day.

• No payment is required.

The Castle of Roquefixade

A still point in the world. Here the wind is for ever erasing from the stones what time writes wordlessly with its vast blind force. the castle kneels before the light springing up from behind the mountain.

The castle of Roquefixade

The castle has an elevated position atop a particularly steep promontory above the Valley of the Baure, in the Pays de Foix region. For many miles beneath, fertile farmland spreads out under the remains of this former Cathar stronghold.

Roquefixade is along the D117 near Lavelanet, about 85 km from Carcassonne.

Visiting

• The castle may be visited every day.

• No payment is required, but access is difficult.

The Castle of Puivert

The present castle of Puivert dates mainly from the fourteenth century. The castle which the troops of Simon de Montfort besieged, under the leadership of Thomas-Pons de Bruyères, was on a slightly different site, and has almost entirely disappeared.

The castle of Puivert

Standing at the edge of the Ariège region, the fortress guarded the road between Foix and Perpignan. Today, the imposing keep contains several rooms including a musician's chamber with many sculptured stone figures.

Puivert is a charming old town, 50 km from Carcassonne, and is dominated by the well-reserved castle.

According to legend, the castle is where some of the greatest troubadours of the land came to hold a court of love. Time has silenced their voices. The crusade swept across this peaceful country.

What remains are the songs of birds in the eternal wild grasses and these upright walls where love poems and war cries seem together to have given birth to nothing but peace.

The Castle of Montségur

Accessible on foot from the parking place, just outside the old town. It's quite a climb, remember to take water with you and keep your head covered from the sun. It may take up to 2 hours when you leave from the village.
This castle is the most famous of them all and attracts pilgrims from all over the world. In the village below you can have a wonderful lunch in the picturesque little Gite de France, which also has a souvenir shop.

    The castle of Montségur

On the spot of an earlier fortress, a new castle was built in 1204. Here the soldiers of Pierre-Roger de Mirepoix were situated, while the Cathars lived around the castle. Montségur was one of the last Cathar strongholds to be taken, but that was no easy job. Because it seemed to be the safest place for them, there were many Cathar perfecti here, along with their most precious possessions. The siege begun in July 1243, followed by months in terrible Winter conditions. Neither gave in. The crusaders then built catapults to destroy the buildings which protected the people from the elements.

On March 1st, the crusaders agreed to give them a 15-day peace, so that they would get to a decision. Pierre-Roger agreed to surrender, but he wanted the promise that his garrison would be spared. During this period, several Cathars escaped the castle with a secret baggage. This would become the basis of many Grail legends. All other Cathars who would not become roman catholics, ended in the flames of a huge stake. They would throw themselves into the fire, "happy" to leave the material world behind them.

The castle you see today is a new building, a third castle, built by the new Lord of Mirepoix, Guy de Lévis II in 1245. On the northwest side of the castle lie the ruins of the Cathar village, where people are excavating the site.

On route to the castle you arrive at the "Prats dels Cramats", where you can see a monument to the Cathars who were burned here on 16th March 1244. The monument, which is situated on one of the loveliest spots in the Midi-Pyrenees, says it all: "Als Catars, als martirs del pur amor chrestian, 16 mars 1244". (To the Cathars, to the marters of the pure christian love, 16th March 1244)

The Castle of Puilaurens

On a rocky pedestal reaching 697 metres into the sky the fortress of Puilaurens blocked one of the gateways to the Fenouillèdes. Saint Louis ordered it to be fortified. It was taken time and again, but finally fell once and for all under the power of the French king around 1250.

The castle of Puilaurens

For four centuries, Puilaurens was France's most southerly fortress. During the Albigensian Crusade it sheltered many important historical figures. The castle of Puilaurens in the most complete defensive site of its type.

Nothing remains of the first castle built on this site. These ruins are what is left of the last. Castles are like human beings: they pass through childhood, adult vigour and old age to a motionless eternity - not stripped of flesh but released from the flesh, in all lights and all weathers.

Visiting

• Average duration tour the ruins is 60 minutes.

• Open all day April to October.

• Open for weekends and school holidays November to March.

• Closed in January

                                  The Mystery of the Knights Templar

It is the year 1112. A small group of knights form the new order "Ordo Supremus Militaris Templi Hierosolymitani", better known as the Knights Templar. They vowed poverty and their seal, showing two knights sharing one horse, is still recognizable today as the Templar symbol. In spite of their vows, the Templars became very powerful in a very short period of time. Because of their charismatic essence, many rich, high born lords joined them and since they had to give up all their possessions to the order, the Order of the Knights Templar became very rich. It is also said, that these 9 knights were originally 9 descendants of the Royal House of Judah, also known as the 9 ringlords, which fled to other countries such as Turkey, France, Malta and Cyprus in the 1st century AD. This would have given them the blessings of the pope, which even went very far. They didn't have to pay taxes to the church of Rome and had carte blanche. Over the decades, the wealth and power of the order grew and grew. They were the founders of the largest banking system the world had ever seen. They built strongholds on strategic places and trade routes and levied heavy taxes on those who wanted to pass, or wanted their protection. Their financial and military independence made them feared by kings and popes. They obeyed no one. The fact that the king of France had a large debt with them, was the drop that made the bucket flow and this turned the fate of the order. But this doesn't conclude their story.

Many legends circle around their history. Why did the 9 lords form the Templar Order? Why did the crusaders take Jerusalem in the early 12th century, suddenly, after over a thousand years? Hughes de Payens and his eight friends vowed in the presence of the Patriarch of Jerusalem, to defend the christians and the christian kingdom, which was governed from Jerusalem. In the footsteps of Salomon and Jesus a new king was chosen. For the first time in a thousand years, the Knights Templar came very close to the secret vaults beneath the Templar mount. The Knights Templar were Cistercians, and were protected by Cistercian father Bernard of Clairvaux. He believed that the Ark of the Covenant was still underneath the Temple mount. On his advice, the knights secretly dug their way into the vaults. During their stay in the Middle East, the Templars were introduced to knowledge and wisdom of the Orient. The knowledge of the stars, medicine, architecture, but they also learnt the true history of the first century. Many of these things were kept a secret and slowly but surely the Templars turned against the roman catholic church and their dogmas. Their dream was to form their own state in the Languedoc, because here in the Languedoc they found relative safety for all, who had a different lifestyle or religion.

With the growth of the Templar Order, many of the largest cathedrals of Europe were built. They introduced the gothic style, gothic meaning secret, not Visigoth. The Freemasons were formed to protect the newly found wisdom and knowledge of number, measure and weight. In the same period, the King Arthur stories and Holy Grail legends came into existence and the Troubadours invented courtly love. Many relics were kept in churches and cathedrals to attract pilgrims. To ensure a strong opposition against the Cathars and other non-catholic religions, the catholic christianity was promoted by creating the stories around the Holy Grail and the (fake or real) relics to act as "solid" proof of the catholic dogma. When this didn't work, the church decided to show their teeth and claws. It was Bernard of Clairvaux who came to warn the Cathars of the Languedoc, that the roman catholic church was considering a crusade to urge them to become catholics. Unfortunately, without success. The pope called upon a new crusade, this time not to fight the Muslims, but to fight the Cathars and their protectors of the Languedoc. The king of France wasn't very keen on the crusade, but the pope demanded his assistance in the matter. The first crusade to the Languedoc, for the greater part led by Simon de Montfort, failed. The Languedoc was reconquered and for a short time, the Cathar population was relatively safe. Then a second crusade was organized by the pope under a new king of France. However, this second royal crusade wasn't only about a new attempt to crush the Cathar belief system. It was also about conquering the Languedoc for the French crown and to get the possessions and goldmines of the Knights Templar and the lands of the feudal Lords of the Languedoc. In 1244, the year that Montsegur fell, Jerusalem was recaptured by the Muslims and Rome was angry. This time the Languedoc was taken and added to the French crown. In the fifty years that followed, there was still a hunt for the remaining Cathars who were, once they were found, burned at the stake.

You are now entering an unknown world. A particular land, which has its own unique place in history. A history which has not yet been uncovered. Legends roam the realm of Oc. Archeologists and historians are unable to prove that the legends are just mere legends. The earth of the Languedoc was sacred to the Celts. Many stone circles and dolmen are quiet witnesses of their respect for the land. Some areas are called "Val de Dieu" or "Terre de Dieu" (valley or land of God).

Today, scholars speculate on the presence of Egyptian culture in the Languedoc in Celtic times, well over 3000 years ago. The Languedoc was also discovered by Greeks and Phoenicians who were always looking for a new place to colonize. In their footsteps came the Romans, who founded Narbonne and are responsible for the first hardened road of Gaul. From turbulent Palestine, more and more Jews sought refuge in the Languedoc, founded a colony here and introduced the vine culture. In the Languedoc everyone was relatively safe and life was good.

In the mean time, old religions like the Sol-Invictus or Sulis-Minerva and Isis/Artemis cults were very popular. The name Gaul refers to the cock, a symbol of the sun as it greets the sun every morning. The esoteric knowledge and wisdom which was given by the ancients to the Egyptians and then to the Jewish people was kept safe here. Even today, archeologists unearth ancient suntemples. Even the Knights Templar were involved in the suncult. Two Lords of Carcassonne from the Trencavel Family had the middle name "Aton", an Egyptian diety from the 18th Dynasty of Achnaton, the Pharao of the Sun. In this fascinating period in history, many aspects of the Jews originated, such as the Ten Commandments, the Ark of the Covenant and the reunion of their faith in only one God. Mozes had learned much of this ancient knowledge, when he was still living at the Egyptian royal court. This knowledge would give him and Aaron, who was the High Priest of Heliopolis at the time, the strength and power which was needed to materialize the Exodus. 

So, when the Crusaders conquered Jerusalem in the 12th century, the new order of the Knights Templar searched the Temple mount and found relics, treasures and knowledge of the old kings of Juda. From that moment on a new era of cathedral building and architecture was introduced: the Gothic style. Many strange constructions were copies of star systems or pentagrams. This, however, was also done in a more ancient period of human history, for instance at Giza and Ankhor. The Knights Templar discovered ancient sea routes, which enabled them to discover new territory, among which Nova Scotia (New Scotland), centuries before Columbus is known to discover America. And even he sailed with the red Templar cross on his sail.

They were clearly in the possession of important knowledge from the ancients, from civilizations which existed before the last ice-age and flourished, as Graham Hancock has been able to show in his impressive research of the Lost Civilizations. The Templars found the knowledge of measure, weight and number, of orientation points all over the world, of the stars and of the true history of the first century. The history which was kept a secret by the roman catholic church. The real story of Jesus and Mary Magdalene.

And thus the Knights Templar became a threat to the roman catholic church.

Another theory tells of documents and the story of Mary Magdalene, who came to the Languedoc in the 1st century AD (44 or 45 AD). She may have taken with her several items, on which the world still speculates today. Was it the Holy Grail, ancient knowledge, a green stone cup (jade?), the children of Jesus (the Grail bloodline) or all of this? We may never find out exactly.

Other religious groups which were not tolerated in the rest of Europe, like the Cathars, flourished in the Languedoc. They did not believe that Jesus died on the cross, did not need a church and certainly no dogma. This was the cause of their dreadful fate, because it lead to one of the bloodiest episodes in history. Apart from the crusades to the Holy Land, there was another crusade, the Albigenzian crusade. Peaceful, loving and hardworking people who merely had a different faith, were tortured and burned alive. To be absolutely sure that no Cathar would escape the flames, the Dominican Order and the pope created an institution to cause so much fear, that people would betray their own parents or neighbours. The Holy Inquisition. However, not all Cathars were killed. Many fled to the mountains, e.g. the Montagne Noire and went underground. Catharism became an underground movement. Did these people possess holy relics, the knowledge of the Magdala, did they protect the Grail bloodline? And how can we trace all this in modern day Languedoc?

Cathar castles are all over the land. Holy water places and other sanctuaries remind us of Artemis, Isis and the Magdala (or Black Madonna). Esotheric orders such as the Freemasons and Rosicrucians leave mysterious symbols in churches and on gravestones. Medieval painters include secret codes in their paintings which are only visible to the initiated (solis sacerdotibus). A parchment arrives in Paris which proves that Jesus was still alive in 45 AD. And it vanished without a trace...

Many books are written about the Enigma of Rennes-le-Chateau in which authors speculate on Templar gold, the true story of the 1st century, a tomb in which the remains of Jesus rest, and little by little we discover pieces of the puzzle hidden by the church of Rome. The image which is now becoming clearer everyday, reveals that the legends are no legends at all. They are hidden pieces of true history. The mysterious history of the Languedoc.

Many people are attracted by the hidden history of human civilization and the secrets of nature. We wonder where and how we can find the truth. The search for the truth is an inbuilt quality of the human being, which will eventually lead him or her towards soulgrowth.

History has been divided into two lines:
1) The thick blue history line containing half truths, which is visible for all.
2)The thin red history line containing the truth, which is visible for only a few.

We have access to the hidden history by studying the thin red history line which will give us a peak into the mysticism of old, the real history of our civilization and many other truths. But where do we begin? d

We prepare ourselves by studying symbolism. Symbolism will give us a key towards the understanding of many secret signs and symbols used by initiates of several ancient orders and we find those symbols in many paintings, statues, carvings, cathedrals (especially the Gothic ones), coats of arms, etc. Let us look at the painting on the right. This is not Mother Mary. This is Mary Magdalene, Myriam Mag Dan, the presumed companion and follower of Jesus in the 1st Century AD. She holds a closed book, which betrayes that the history around her is not easy to discover. In her right hand she carries a red rose, which refers to the soul, and you will notice how her index finger is pointing upwards. This refers to John the Baptist, Abba Yehohannan, who playes an important but forgotten role in history. Her hairdress is Egyptian and so is the Ankh on the moon she stands on and the seal of Tutmose III. What does Mary Magdalene have in common with Egypt? Why is her body colour dark, and why does she stand on the moon? Why does she have 12 stars around her head? Some of you will recognise symbols of the ancient Mother Goddess, who has had many names in the past. And here, with Mother Earth, everything begins....

Maria Magdalene and Egypt
Nowadays everyone knows that Egypt has a mystical culture which goes back into times forgotten. Their origin is still a mystery, their culture based on an older civilization, and their great wisdom and power lives on in ancient orders such as the Rosicrucians. Powerful gods and goddesses ruled the world of the ancient Egyptians. In the west was the land of Sah and Ra, the underworld of Osiris and the sungod Ra. The starsystems in the heavens were copied on the earth to make a symbolic gateway to their realms. Osiris and Isis, brother and sister as well as husband and wife, ruled the land and the afterlife, took care of the fertility of the earth so that the earth would produce food and drink, the body and blood of the god Osiris. Isis gave birth to Horus and paved the road for future christianity. Isis was the mother goddess, beloved by all. Around 1500 BC, around the time of Achnaton in Egypt, there was a growing domination of the one and only god who was both male and female, and to a certain point the mother goddess was abandoned. It was in these days that Moses and A'aron took many things from the Egyptians, built the Ark of the Covenant and waited in the Sinai desert until the aftermath of the Santorini vulcano eruption had died out and their goal, the 'promised land', would be habitable again. They had taken many things from the Egyptians. Perhaps also the god Toth's laws and knowledge which was kept in a secret chaimber to which a high priest only had access. A'aron was the High Priest of On (Heliopolis) before the Exodus....

The Languedoc was a colony of the Fenicians and later of the Greeks and Romans, and with them came their culture. There was also a florishing Jewish colony and they are said to have been the ones who brought vineculture to France, just a little while before the Romans invaded the country. The vine is a very powerful symbol in the Grail legends. Jesus was supposed to be the vine and his bloodline would be symbolised by a vine tree. Of course, Arthur and the Grail legends are connected. And from the grail we once again arrive at Maria Magdalene and the alabaster jar, in which she kept the Nardus oil to anoint Jesus as the Messiah, which means "the annointed one". However we must consider that the jar she carries could also just refer to the Mother Goddess, since other Goddesses of Fertility in the Orient also carry such a jar.