The Château Narbonnais was a castle of the

Counts of Toulouse The count of Toulouse (, ) was the ruler of county of Toulouse, Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the kingdom of the Franks, Frankish kings, the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surrounding ...

on the west side of the city

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 ...

. The

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

featured prominently in the

Cathar Catharism ( ; from the , "the pure ones") was a Christian quasi- dualist and pseudo-Gnostic movement which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France, between the 12th and 14th centuries. Denounced as a he ...

wars.

History

In May 1215, the City of Toulouse surrendered to

Simon de Montfort Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, 1st Earl of Chester ( – 4 August 1265), also known as Simon V de Montfort, was an English nobleman of French origin and a member of the English peerage, who led the baronial opposition to the rule of ...

. In September or October 1216, a popular uprising in the city against the occupying forces forced Simon to leave. On 12 September 1217

Raymond VI of Toulouse Raymond VI (; 27 October 1156 – 2 August 1222) was Count of Toulouse and Marquis of Provence from 1194 to 1222. He was also Count of Melgueil (as Raymond IV) from 1173 to 1190. Early life Raymond was born at Saint-Gilles, Gard, the son of ...

re-entered the city, trapping Simon de Montfort's wife's

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

in the

Château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...

. From 13 September 1217 to 22 July 1218, Simon de Montfort besieged the castle again, and on 25 June 1218, he was hit on the head by a stone from a trebuchet, and died. The castle was dismantled in 1549.

Description

The castle was dismantled, but depiction of it remains on th
Municipal Seal
of Toulouse which shows a crenellated castle with three towersKaren Ralls, Medieval Mysteries: A Guide to History, Lore, Places and Symbolism (Nicolas-Hays, Inc., 15 Jan. 2014)
p91

References

Châteaux in Haute-Garonne {{France-castle-stub