One of the World Heritage that France has to his credit is the medieval Citadel of Carcassonne. It is part of the city of the same name, a city in the Languedoc-Rousillion region and the medieval construction is on a hill overlooking the Aude river. It is the heart of the city and was awarded by UNESCO in 1997.
The citadel actually predates medieval times since its origins date back to the Gallo-Roman period, therefore it has more than 2500 years of history and has seen Romans, Visigoths, Saracens and Crusaders pass. It was the Romans who fortified the first town in this area, and at the end of the XNUMXth century the construction became part of the Kingdom of France forever.
Being on the border with Aragon it had military importance for a long time but towards the 52th century the entire province of Rousillion passed into French hands and then the military fortifications fell into disuse. The wide and long walls, it is three kilometers long, they are double and there are XNUMX defensive towers, they were in danger of being demolished in the XNUMXth century but the local people rejected the decision and fought to convert the Citadel of Carcassonne in a historical monument.
La medieval citadel of Carcassonne It was then restored during the 1997th century and as I said above, in XNUMX, it was declared World Heritage.