About
Holiday Homes in Minerve - France Vacation Holiday Rentals in Minerve:
The region of Agel is "Minervois", a wild and far away from tourist part, very beautiful with a lot of wine and tipical mediteranean vegetation. The castle is from the XII century with an old familial atmosphere.
To visit nearby Agel
Towns and cities
Béziers (40 km) : a pretty medieval town bursting with energy (rugby, bullfighting). Not to be missed, the Cathedral of St Nazaire (13th-14th centuries), the narrow streets of the medieval old town, and Béziers’ own Roman amphitheatre.
Narbonne (25 km) : Stroll around the old town, the quartier de la Cité and Narbonne’s pretty pedestrian street. Don’t miss the old Archbishops’ palace with its medieval halls, the Gilles-Aycellin donjon and Narbonne’s archeological and art museums.
The ancient cathar city of Minerve (10 km) : you’ll marvel at its natural bridges, breathtaking canyons, dolmens and ramparts.
The ancient walled city of Carcassonne (50 km) : the top tourist attraction in the Aude département. See the walled city with its ramparts and towers, the château Comtal and the Eglise St Nazaire.
Châteaux and abbeys
Castles :
Lastours : The four castles are on a rocky spur above the village of Lastours, isolated by the deep valleys of the Orbeil and Grésilhou rivers. They were built at an altitude of 300 m along a rock wall just 1300 feet (~400 m) long by 165 feet (~50 m) wide. Cabaret, Surdespine and la Tour Régine stand in line, while Quertinheux is built on a separate pinnacle close by.
Villerouge Termenes : Totally restored, this castle is a remarkable example of military architecture, essentially from the 13th century. A tower occupies each comer of this rectangular fortified building. Twentyfive metres over the stream called Le Lou, the massive south-east tower was probably the keep. At the top of the curtain walls there is a guards' walk, part of which is covered. Access to the monument is from the northern side over a ramp preceded by a fortified gate decorated with the coat-ofarms of the archbishop Bernard de Farges. The castle, which has three construction periods, dates mainly from the 13th century.
Arques : The castle rises on an isolated hillock, a few hundred metres from the western side of the village. The castle was mentioned for the first time in 1011, but the original lords of Arques were dispossessed in the 12th century in favour of the powerful family of Termes. During the Crusade against the Albigensians, Béranger d'Arques, descendant of the despoiled family, was one of the comrades of Guillaume de Peyrepertuse.
Cucugnan Queribus The castle of Quéribus is situated on the commune of Cucugnan which is renowned in French literature for being the site of the ‘Priest's Sermon' by Alphonse Daudet. Perched on a narrow rocky outcrop, the castle stands proudly at 728 metres altitude. Mentioned in 1020, the castle of Quéribus was part of the County of Besalù, then of Barcelona and was finally held as a royal fortress by the house of Aragon in 1162.
Duilhac Peyrepertuse : The castle lies on a 730 meter high rock and when the weather is clear you can see the Mediterranean Sea from it. People have been living on the site of castle Peyrepertuse since roman times. The castle is first mentioned in 1050. During its existence it has had its share of warfare. It was involved in the Crusades and the Inquisition because of its occupancy by cathars. Also its position on the border of medieval France and the kingdom of Aragon (present day Spain) contributed to a lot of bloodshed. It's a large castle spread out over a rocky ridge at the feet of the Pyrenees.
Abbeys :
Abbaye de Fontfroide : a superb Cistercian abbey. In 1093, a Benedictine monastery is founded in Fontfroide. When Saint Bernard comes to the Languedoc in 1145, it joins the order of the Cistercians. The same year the construction of the church begins. With its pointed barrel vault rising to a height of 20 m, it represents in impressive manner the simplicity of Cistercian architecture.
Abbaye de Caunes-Minervois : Abbaye bénédictine at the heart of a village XV-XVIIIème (l’Hôtel d’AlibertL’Hôtel Sicard , carrières de marbre...) in the Minervois.
Abbaye de Lagrasse : an abbey at the heart of a restored medieval village (Eglise St Michel, built in the 14th century, and a variety of village houses dating back to the 15th - 18th centuries...),
Sites of natural beauty
The giant Cabrespine gouffre : It has two main curiosities, a large room accessible to the public: floor surface: 80 m, height 220 m! This classifies the cave between the biggest of the world, opened to tourism and a wide variety of cristalisations, thanks to the particular geological context. A protection programme has been set up since the discovery of the cave (in the seventees).
Grottes des Demoiselles : a grotto carved out from the cliffs at Thaurac. A funicular railway takes you right inside this extraordinary underground labyrinth, culminating in an enormous underground space known to the locals as "la Cathédrale".
Grotte de Clamouse : one of the biggest and most beautiful sets of underground caves in France, extending over nearly 12 km and rising to a height of 600 metres.
But also near Agel :
Various pleasant walks await you – ask your hostess for maps and guide books
Canal du midi : walk along the canalside, ride a canal boat or visit one of the locks...
Massif de la Clape : a nearby mountain with typical villages, vineyards and wine-cellars
Montagne noire : the Black Mountain, offering hiking, mountain biking, fishing... and charming, unspoilt villages
The upper Aude valley with its gorges and canyons offers breathtaking views and exhilarating walks, as well as fishing and canoeing
History of the castle of Agel :
For most of the 12th century, the South-West of what is now France was rocked by the scandal of the Cathar or Albigensian heresy, which challenged the teachings of the church of Rome and thereby the very authority of the Pope, Innocent III. The heresy was strongest in the county of Toulouse and all over Languedoc, where vassals of the Count of Toulouse built a a line of fortresses to protect themselves against Vatican agents. After Pierre de Castelnau, despatched by the Pope to restore order in the region, was murdered in 1208, the Pope ordered the northern barons to lead a bloody Crusade against the Cathars.
One of that line of fortified châteaux built to resist the Pope’s forces was Agel. We know from evidence in the oldest part of the château that in the year 1100 its owner was Bernarde, Lord of Agel, Minerve and Cazelles.
The Crusade against the Cathars, led by Simon de Montfort, raged with unremitting violence throughout Languedoc In Simon’s bid to take Minerve in 1210, the château d’Agel was almost entirely destroyed by fire. In July of that year, Minerve finally fell, and the 180 Cathars who had taken refuge there threw themselves on to the burning pyre.
The château d’Agel, with its commanding position over the Cesse valley was of great strategic importance to the Cathars. Simon de Montfort ordered Aymeri, viscount of Narbonne, to besiege the château, but Guiraud de Pépieux, Lord of Aigues-Vives and Agel, escaped during the night to Minerve, taking with him two French knights whom he had captured.
It was the Treaty of Paris, which annexed Languedoc to France in 1220, that put an end to the Crusade. Guiraud de Pépieux, who had escaped the massacre, set about restoring the château for his descendants. Notarial records dating back to the year 1300 mention another Guillaume de Pépieux as Lord of Aigues-Vives and Agel.