Carcassone

Carcassone

Carcassonne is a French fortified city in the department of Aude in the Occitania region, Located 80 kilometers east of Toulouse in the south of France. The town covers an area of about 65 km2, much larger than the many small towns in the Aude department. The town is crossed by the Aude and Fresquel rivers and the Canal du Midi. Situated on the Aude plain between the historic trade routes linking the Atlantic with the Mediterranean and the Massif Central with the Pyrénées, Carcassonne has been inhabited since the Neolithic period. The ancient Romans, who occupied the hilltop until the fall of the Western Roman Empire, quickly recognized its strategic importance. During the 5th century, the region of Septimania was conquered by the Visigoths, who established the city of Carcassonne in the recently created Visigothic Kingdom. Restored in 1853 by the theorist and architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, the Cité de Carcassonne is a medieval fortress dating from the Gallo-Roman period. Due to the exceptional preservation and restoration of its medieval citadel, Carcassonne was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. As a result, Carcassonne relies heavily on tourism. However, manufacturing and wine production are also important economic sectors.