Lastours

Lastours Las Tors
region	Occitania
Department	Aude
Arrondissement	Carcassonne
Canton	La Vallée de l'Orbiel
Community association	Montagne Noire
Coordinates	43 ° 20 '  N , 2 ° 23'  E Coordinates: 43 ° 20 '  N , 2 ° 23'  E
height	163-383 m
surface	2.80 km 2
Residents	159 (January 1, 2017)
Population density	57 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code	11600
INSEE code	11194
Lastours - Château de Cabaret , Tour Régine , Château de Surdespine and Château de Querthineux

Lastours ( Occitan : Las Tors ) is a small southern French municipality with 159 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017) in the Aude department in the Occitania region . The place was first named Cabaret after the noble family residing here, later called Rivière and from the 18th century officially named Lastours ("the towers").

location

Lastours is located in the southern foothills of the Montagne Noire on the Orbiel River in the heart of the Pays du Cabardès about 18 kilometers (driving distance) north of Carcassonne . To the east, the landscape of the Minervois joins the picturesque towns of Caunes-Minervois , Rieux-Minervois and Minerve . The four medieval castles are about a two-kilometer walk and a 180-meter difference in altitude from the village.

Population development

year	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2007	2017
Residents	444	300	248	159	163	165	159

In the 19th century the place had more than 800 inhabitants at times. As a result of the phylloxera crisis , the mechanization of agriculture and the end of ore mining and cloth weaving, the population decreased significantly.

economy

Ores ( iron , lead , copper , even silver and gold ) were mined here and processed into blanks as early as ancient and medieval times ; ore mining continued until the 19th century. At the same time, cloth weaving - water-powered mechanical looms - played a major role in Lastours' economic life. In addition, viticulture has probably been practiced in the area since Gallo-Roman times; the wine is now marketed through the Cabardès (AOC) appellation.

history

Ancient human artifacts were discovered in a grotto below the four castles. The area has been known for its wealth of ores since ancient times. In the 11th century it belonged to the landlords ( seigneurs ) of Cabaret, a quite numerous family who made Lastours a center of the Albigensian movement , but the Albigensian Crusade (1209-1229) ended all of this. The last lord of the castle, Pierre Roger de Cabaret , ceded his property to Simon de Montfort in 1211 without a fight ; he died in 1229 or a short time later. In the 16th century, a large part of the population turned to Protestantism , but Guillaume de Joyeuse ( Marshal of France ) put an end to this in 1591.

Attractions

Châteaux de Lastours

→ Main article : Châteaux de Lastours

The very large Cabaret family built three of the four castles in the 11th and early 12th centuries, which - although surrendered without a fight during the Albigensian Crusade - were nevertheless torn down. The fourth castle ( Tour Régine ) was built as a royal castle around 1260. All four castle ruins have been recognized as Monuments historiques since 1905 .

Others

• About 50 meters below the castles lie the ruins of the fortified hilltop settlement ( castrum ) that was only uncovered in the 1980s and 1990s ; it was one of three castra at the foot of the castles. During the excavations, a large number of vessels, keys, belt buckles, etc. were found, so that the conclusion that the residents were forbidden to take away any personal belongings - not even clothing - is obvious.
• The uninhabited Château de la Caunette , a little further away from the village, was the residence of a wealthy mine owner and dates from the 16th century. It has been recognized as a monument historique since 1948 .

Personalities

• Pierre Roger de Cabaret († after 1229), Knight and Faydit at the time of the Albigensian Crusades

See also

• Cathar castles

literature

• Marie-Élise Gardel, Bruno Jaudon, Sylvain Olivier: De Rivière à Lastours, histoire d'un village languedocien (XIIIe-XXe siècles). Nouvelles Éditions Loubatières, 2011, ISBN 978-2-86266-634-1

Web links

Commons : Lastours  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Lastours - Tourism website (French)
• Lastours, castles - floor plans, photos and information (French)
• Lastours, Castles - Info (French)
• Lastours, castles - photos + information (French)
• Lastours, Castrum - Reconstruction drawing + information (French)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Châteaux de Lastours, Lastours in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)
2. ↑ Château de la Caunette, Lastours in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)