The hills of the Aude department are peppered with the eerie vestiges of medieval castles that belonged to noblemen loyal to the Cathar sect.
During the Albigensian Crusade the sect was violently suppressed by the French Catholics, and many of these strongholds turned to rubble.
The four castles in Lastours, Cabaret, Tour Régine, Quertinheux and Surdespine, were sacked during the crusade and later repurposed as fortresses.
They are part of the same complex, but are all different structures with courtyards, arcades, towers with loopholes, murder holes and spiral staircases, as well as the ruins of a church.
The location is sumptuous, high on a rocky spur in the Black Mountains.
And the many little flourishes and surprises contribute to a fulfilling hour or two of discovery
