Location: Carcassonne, France
After Christmas, and New Years celebrations have come and gone, there is finally a new topic to post about, as and when they happen. For the new 2012, a new post:
Medieval Cathar city fortress. Two sets of ramparts on a hill, giving an imposing sight. This view does masquerade the main town that is contained within the walls. It is a myriad of alleyways fronted by shops, cafés and restaurants. The castle style seems to at least have been maintained throughout the grounds inside, with the sandy-colored stone being the dominant theme.
After entering the castle via the drawbridge, one passes through archways to the first street of shops. One of the first things one notices are the tourist shops displaying racks of medival weapons and armour, alongside small statues of dragons and wizards, miniatures of the castle and the racks of postcards.
The first main place visited was the cathedral. A large stone structure like many others, inside is also alike to many. However at the head of the structure, there is a wide space surround by exquisite stained glass windows which affect an almost 'divine' atmosphere. The cathedral also contains religious statues within, mostly of the Virgin Mary, which are very nice to look upon, have become something normal in southern France.
Following this, one can then amble along the walls of the fortress itself, looking out upon the valley that stretches to the horizon, and to see the rest of the city that the fortress pre-dates.
Last place visited was museum of torture, or appropriately it's full name, Musée de l'Inquisition, Instruments de Torture & Chateaux Cathares. A small exterior to this little museum does little in itself to hide the theme of the place, where surrounded by medieval stocks, the entrance starts through a stone doorway and up winding stone stairs in to one of the older building of the castle itself, and through its passages are scattered numerous exhibits, the main part of which are the variety of torture implements, many old and incredibly unpleasant devices used to inflict serious harm on a person, many of which had been used in torture not for any meaningful purpose but to satisfy the sadism of many of the users, namely the members of the Inquisition. Lastly, towards the exit, the last main exhibit is a room devoted to models and descriptions of a selection of Cathar castles, as well as some reading material on why the French had destroyed the Cathars and their religion, namely in the name of the church in Rome and personal greed. With all that, one leaves the museum with a renewed sense of the castle around them, and how it was for the people who had lived before.
This concludes the short trip through Carcassonne, which is truly a site worth seeing, well deserving of it's status as a World Heritage Site.
Lastly, images above were taken by the author except for the two on the Museum of Torture, which are from Virtual tourist and La Depeche.fr.
After Christmas, and New Years celebrations have come and gone, there is finally a new topic to post about, as and when they happen. For the new 2012, a new post:
Medieval Cathar city fortress. Two sets of ramparts on a hill, giving an imposing sight. This view does masquerade the main town that is contained within the walls. It is a myriad of alleyways fronted by shops, cafés and restaurants. The castle style seems to at least have been maintained throughout the grounds inside, with the sandy-colored stone being the dominant theme.
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The first main place visited was the cathedral. A large stone structure like many others, inside is also alike to many. However at the head of the structure, there is a wide space surround by exquisite stained glass windows which affect an almost 'divine' atmosphere. The cathedral also contains religious statues within, mostly of the Virgin Mary, which are very nice to look upon, have become something normal in southern France.
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Following this, one can then amble along the walls of the fortress itself, looking out upon the valley that stretches to the horizon, and to see the rest of the city that the fortress pre-dates.
Last place visited was museum of torture, or appropriately it's full name, Musée de l'Inquisition, Instruments de Torture & Chateaux Cathares. A small exterior to this little museum does little in itself to hide the theme of the place, where surrounded by medieval stocks, the entrance starts through a stone doorway and up winding stone stairs in to one of the older building of the castle itself, and through its passages are scattered numerous exhibits, the main part of which are the variety of torture implements, many old and incredibly unpleasant devices used to inflict serious harm on a person, many of which had been used in torture not for any meaningful purpose but to satisfy the sadism of many of the users, namely the members of the Inquisition. Lastly, towards the exit, the last main exhibit is a room devoted to models and descriptions of a selection of Cathar castles, as well as some reading material on why the French had destroyed the Cathars and their religion, namely in the name of the church in Rome and personal greed. With all that, one leaves the museum with a renewed sense of the castle around them, and how it was for the people who had lived before.
 |  |
This concludes the short trip through Carcassonne, which is truly a site worth seeing, well deserving of it's status as a World Heritage Site.
Lastly, images above were taken by the author except for the two on the Museum of Torture, which are from Virtual tourist and La Depeche.fr.
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