Carcassonne (fr. Carcassonne) is a fortified town in the Aude department, Occitania Region, France. ‘The town is one of the most important historical sites in France; it is not only because of the ancient fortress itself but also due to its size. It consists of a picturesque medieval town with streets, houses, churches inside three lines of fortified walls.
History and legends
The town is along a historical route connecting the Atlantic Ocean with the Mediterranean Sea and the Central Massif with the Pyrenees. People have inhabited this place since Neolithic times. The first mentioning of Carcassonne dates back to the first century BC. Galls established the first settlement here. We know that Romans recognized the strategic importance of this place; they conquered it in the year 118 BC. Carcassonne citadel, the medieval fortress, dates back to the Gallo-Roman period.
Visigoths took control over the oppidum (the town-fortress from the Roman Empire surrounded by a moat and earth mound) in the V century; Saracenes conquered it in the VIII century, franc got rid of them. Francs called it Karkashuna town.
The town of Carcassonne has its own legend dating back to the beginning of the ninth century. It was at that time that the Saracens ruled in the city and Charles the Great (Charlemagne) decided to conquer it. The town’s siege lasted five years. A lady named Carcas stood at the head of the city’s defensive knights in the sixth year. The town residents experienced hunger, were greatly exhausted, and were on the verge of life and death.
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