Walking the Ramparts of Carcassonne, Carcassonne, France
After the docent tour, I pay for a self-guided tour that will give me access to Carcassonne鈥檚 ramparts.
There are two walls 鈥� the inner wall built during the Roman era, and a taller outer wall built after the Albigensian Crusade of 1209. The two walls together include 52 towers and barbicans, placed at 15 meter intervals. It takes nearly two hours to circumnavigate the city, and a great many stairs are involved.
I find an example of the rounded stones that were designed to deflect arrows, as part of the defensive strategy in the outer wall and towers.
After Carcassonne became part of the royal estate in 1226, the city鈥檚 defenses were increased by the fortification of the outer wall. This open space was used to assemble troops. The tower was left open on the interior side, so if it was taken by enemy forces, the tower would not offer any protection from crossbow fire from the castle.
During the 12th century the Trencavel family built their castle here and started repairs on the inner Gallo-Roman wall. The castle is built on the highest point within the Gallo-Roman wall, and the furthest spot away from the drawbridge. It was surrounded by a dry moat and is marked by towers with wooden balconies called 鈥榟oardings鈥�. Openings in the floor allowed the soldiers to shoot arrows and drop stones onto anyone attempting to scale the wall. The wooden walls were covered with wet animal skins to prevent them from being set on fire. Commonly used during the 12th-13th centuries, wooden hoardings were replaced by stone machicolations. These hoardings date to 1911 as part of the architect鈥檚 design during the city鈥檚 reconstruction. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).
There are two walls 鈥� the inner wall built during the Roman era, and a taller outer wall built after the Albigensian Crusade of 1209. The two walls together include 52 towers and barbicans, placed at 15 meter intervals. It takes nearly two hours to circumnavigate the city, and a great many stairs are involved.
I find an example of the rounded stones that were designed to deflect arrows, as part of the defensive strategy in the outer wall and towers.
After Carcassonne became part of the royal estate in 1226, the city鈥檚 defenses were increased by the fortification of the outer wall. This open space was used to assemble troops. The tower was left open on the interior side, so if it was taken by enemy forces, the tower would not offer any protection from crossbow fire from the castle.
During the 12th century the Trencavel family built their castle here and started repairs on the inner Gallo-Roman wall. The castle is built on the highest point within the Gallo-Roman wall, and the furthest spot away from the drawbridge. It was surrounded by a dry moat and is marked by towers with wooden balconies called 鈥榟oardings鈥�. Openings in the floor allowed the soldiers to shoot arrows and drop stones onto anyone attempting to scale the wall. The wooden walls were covered with wet animal skins to prevent them from being set on fire. Commonly used during the 12th-13th centuries, wooden hoardings were replaced by stone machicolations. These hoardings date to 1911 as part of the architect鈥檚 design during the city鈥檚 reconstruction. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).
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Guide Name: Walking the Ramparts of Carcassonne
Guide Location: France » Carcassonne
Guide Type: Self-guided Walking Tour (Insider Tips)
Author: Heather Daveno
Read it on Author's Website:
Sight(s) Featured in This Guide:
Guide Location: France » Carcassonne
Guide Type: Self-guided Walking Tour (Insider Tips)
Author: Heather Daveno
Read it on Author's Website:
Sight(s) Featured in This Guide:
- Tour du Paon
- the castle
- the Keep
- amphitheater
- cathedral
- Museum
- Chapel of Notre Dame de la Sante
- List Circuit
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