Château of the Archbishops of Narbonne

En un regard

Le château en bref

The former Château of the Archbishops of Narbonne is located at Montels, in the Hérault. It was one of the eighteen castles that the Archbishop of Narbonne owned in his diocese and, together with Capestang, was one of the prelates' favourite residences. Its main building campaign dates from the mid-12th and 13th centuries, the visible remains probably being from the 13th century. At the end of that century, the courtyard was enclosed by a curtain wall flanked by corner towers. Archbishop Pierre Amiel had a chapel dedicated to Saint George built there; Pope Clement V stopped there in 1309. During the Wars of Religion, the stronghold was dismantled, then reduced to a quarry in the 16th century; the 1809 cadastre still shows standing sections. Surviving remains include sections of curtain wall, towers to the north-east and north-west, and ditches. The archaeological site has been listed as a monument historique (MH) since 2012.