Castelnaudary (; ) is a commune in the

Aude Aude ( ; ) is a Departments of France, department in Southern France, located in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region and named after the river Aude (river), Aude. The departmental council also calls it " ...

department in the Occitanie

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

of southern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It is located in the former

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of the Lauragais and famous for cassoulet of which it claims to be the world capital, and of which it is a major producer.

Geography

Castelnaudary is a market town, and the capital of the territory of Lauragais. The town is located southeast of

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

, about midway along the route from that city to the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

. This route has been used since at least Roman times, and today carries road, motorway ( A61), rail and canal links. Castelnaudary is the main port of the Canal du Midi to which it owed a period of prosperity in the 17th century when agricultural and manufactured produce became easier to export. The ''

Grand Bassin The Grand Bassin is the largest body of open water along the Canal du Midi. It is in Castelnaudary, France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions a ...

'' in the town is at 7 ha the largest open area of water in the canal, and is today its major pleasure port. Castelnaudary station has rail connections to Toulouse, Carcassonne and Narbonne.

History

Roman staging post

In Roman times the location of the town was a staging post on the Narbonne-Toulouse road, and called Sostomagus.

Origin of the name

Castelnaudary comes from the Occitan ''Castèlnòu d'Arri'' — Latin translation ''Castellum Novum Arri'' — meaning "Arrius' new castle".

Major events

* 1103. First official mention of a settlement at Castelnaudary. * 1211. During the

Albigensian Crusade The Albigensian Crusade (), also known as the Cathar Crusade (1209–1229), was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, what is now southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted pri ...

, Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester is besieged in Castelnaudary by the

Count of Toulouse The count of Toulouse (, ) was the ruler of Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the Frankish kings, the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surrounding county from the late 9th century until 12 ...

and the Count of Foix. * 1235. Arrival of the Papal inquisition whose initial attempts to identify and persecute Cathars were unsuccessful due to the solidarity of the townsfolk. * 31 October 1355. During the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

, the town is sacked by the Black Prince who travelling from

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

, ravaged the weaker towns of

Gascony Gascony (; ) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part of the combined Province of Guyenne and Gascon ...

and then the Lauragais as far as Narbonne. The town was pillaged and the inhabitants massacred. The town's walls were not rebuilt until 10 years later. * 1477. The town becomes the capital of the ''comté'' of Lauragais under

Louis XI of France Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revolt known as the ...

. * 1632. The capture of Henri II de Montmorency just outside the town leads to his execution at Toulouse on the orders of

Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, 1st Duke of Richelieu (9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), commonly known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic prelate and statesman who had an outsized influence in civil and religi ...

. * 15 May 1681. Commissioning of the Canal du Midi. * 1754. Construction of L'Ile de la Cybèle. * 1814. Marshal Soult withdraws to the town after the Battle of Toulouse before signing a final surrender at Naurouze.

Population

Its inhabitants are called ''Chauriens''.

Sights

* L'Apothicairerie de l'Hôpital * La Collégiale Saint-Michel * Les Ecluses Saint-Roch * Le

* La Halle aux Grains * L'Ile de la Cybèle. * Le Moulin de Cugarel * La Légion étrangère * Le Présidial * La Chapelle Notre-Dame de Pitié File:MoulindeCugarel.JPG, Moulin de Cugarel File:Castelnaudary canal midi.jpg, Canal du Midi in Castelnaudary

Personalities

Castelnaudary was the birthplace of: * Pierre de Castelnau d. 1208 * Pierre-Jean Fabre (1588-1658), physician to King Louis XIII * Philippe de Rigaud Vaudreuil (1643–1725) * Joseph Martin-Dauch (1741–1801), the only deputy from the Estates General of the Third Estate known to have signed as 'opposant' from taking the Tennis Court Oath, a major event of the French Revolution of 1789 * Jean François Aimé Dejean (1749-1824), army officer and minister of state in the service of the First French Republic and the

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

* Antoine-François Andréossy (1761–1828) * Antoine Marfan (1858–1942), pediatrician *

Georges Canguilhem Georges Canguilhem (; ; 4 June 1904 – 11 September 1995) was a French philosopher and physician who specialized in epistemology and the philosophy of science (in particular, philosophy of biology, biology). Life and work Canguilhem entered t ...

(1904–1995),

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and member of the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

who specialized in the

philosophy of science Philosophy of science is the branch of philosophy concerned with the foundations, methods, and implications of science. Amongst its central questions are the difference between science and non-science, the reliability of scientific theories, ...

Education

* École nationale de l'aviation civile

Military base

The 4th Foreign Regiment of the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

has been stationed in Castelnaudary since 1976, and the base is open to the public on 30 April ( Camerone Day) and at Christmas.

Cassoulet

Castelnaudary styles itself ''Capitale Mondiale du Cassoulet'' ("World Capital of Cassoulet") and the apocryphal legend of the genesis of this dish (originally called ''estofat'') relates that it was first served to the defenders of the town during the siege of 1355. The town is home to La Grande Confrérie du Cassoulet de Castelnaudary (The Brotherhood of Castelnaudary's Cassoulet), an organization which seeks to promote and preserve the dish and its associated traditions. An annual festival celebrating cassoulet, "fête du Cassoulet", is held in the last full week of August; the town center is crowded with various versions of the traditional dish on that date. The cassoulet variant favored in this town is based on the local haricot bean (which is the subject of a protected status application). It also includes goose or duck confit, pork, and Toulouse sausage. Traditional peasant versions of the recipe can take two days or more to prepare. The traditional cooking vessel is an eponymous earthenware pot called a " cassole." Rick Stein featured the Castelnaudary cassoulet in an episode of ''Rick Stein's French Odyssey'' and his recipe was published by BBC Food.

Climate

References

* *

External links

Castelnaudary
(in French)
Castelnaudary Tourisme
(in French) {{Authority control Communes of Aude Languedoc Aude communes articles needing translation from French Wikipedia