Aguilar is primarily known as a pech, or hill, a striking element in the landscape. This land was claimed by Lagrasse Abbey, and passed into the hands of the Termes family towards the end of the 11th century. After the loss of the family castle in 1228, Aguilar became the seigniorial seat of Olivier de Termes, a powerful Occitan knight, previously allied with the Trencavel family. The following day after the Albigensian Crusade in 1241, he signed the surrender of his fortified military stronghold of Aguilar, comprising of a village, a chapel and a castle. Olivier de Termes supported King Louis IX, and became one of his loyal knights. In 1262, alongside the fortresses of Corbières, Aguilar joined the line of defence of the French crown against the kingdom of Aragon. It also received the latest innovations in Philippian architecture. A part of the village was moved to reinforce the military strength of the castle and its hill. After the Treaty of the Pyrenees pushed back the border to the other side of the mountain ridge, the castle lost its strategic interest and was left to face the bitter Cers wind alone...
The outer wall
The ramparts of Aguilar and its six semi-circular towers give the hill a both powerful and graceful appearance. Built at the end of the 13th century and the beginning of the 14th century to reinforce the original outer wall, this ensemble gives the site an almost organic shape and provides it with strong, active defences.
The semi-circular towers
The six towers of the outer wall are spread out along the curtain wall, depending on the weakness of the land. Their semi-circular structure, "open at the throat", means that the castle's occupants, sheltered by the inner wall, can watch them. There's nowhere for an attacker to hide.
The inner wall
The inner wall replaced the original, twelfth-century wall, and overlooks the inside of the castle. Spread over an inner courtyard, it consists of the castle owner's rooms, a tower, a cistern etc. Notice the royal innovation opposite the most vulnerable point of the hill: the wall becomes up to 2.8m thick and takes the form of a spur, capable of breaking any missile.
St Anne's Chapel
This small building, located on a headland outside of the castle walls, is moving due to its simplicity. You can appreciate the freshness provided by its broken barrel-vaulted ceiling and its apse with quarter-sphere vaulting. Now, come and face the elements...
The fortified village
In the prickly heathland with summer smells, the remains of the fortified village wall remind us of life here. The houses lie on different levels on the terraces, under the welcoming hillside where St Anne's Chapel is located.
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Things to explore
As you walk
From Tuchan, a short 6km walk will take you though vineyards and heathland to Aguilar Castle. In the heath, there are many box trees, as is common in the Corbières. This well-groomed bush in French formal gardens is left to grow free. Its white wood, smooth and shiny after polishing, is used to make knife handles, chess pieces, canes, and parts of musical instruments, such as the flute and clarinet. Shown to reduce fevers, box wood is also used against rheumatism or smallpox.
Fitou appellation wines
Nine villages produce Fitou appellation wines (protected designation of origin), including Tuchan and Paziols, which are the closest to Aguilar Castle. These characterful, rich and complex grape varieties, are indicative of a land between the mountains and the sea. Numerous wine-tasting cellars are open to the public. In the Mont Tauch cooperative wine-tasting cellar in Tuchan, you can try the Fitou and Corbières appellation wines and the sweet Rivesaltes wines. Committed to sustainable farming, these wine-growers fully support the nature reserve (find out more about appellations of Aude).
The 'Fort' of Tuchan
Tuchan is a 12th-century castral village. During the middle ages, it was comprised of a central 'fort' encircled by a ditch. The church was probably built in the 14th century inside the Fort, where villagers could hide during times of conflict, such as The One Hundred Year War and pillages by highwaymen
This small village in the Eastern Pyrenees is internationally renowned for its climbing area. A huge limestone cliff offers climbing-lovers over 300 pathways overlooking the magnificent vineyard landscape of the valley of Vingrau. The village is also the starting point for a hike across the crests of the Serre and the Pas de l'Escale, offering exceptional views over the plateau of Tuchan and Mont Tauch, the sea, the Albères and the Canigou. The Vingrau heathland is renowned for its diverse flora and fauna.
Mont Tauch, with its 'rectangular' shape, can be seen from miles around, overlooking the plain of Tuchan and all of the Eastern Corbières. It's an outstanding viewpoint that tops the Geographer Tour. From April to June, the small violet 'spéculaire en faux' flowers brighten up the sides of the mountain. At the top of this nature reserve are fifteen wind turbines, where a royal eagle soars overhead.
Walk around the mines
A few kilometres from Padern and Montgaillard is a superb walk along the Sarrat de Germa trail, which lets you get up close to the former mines. Mining in Corbières dates back to Antiquity and continued until the middle of the 20th century. The two pits in Montgaillard were mined for lead and copper ore. The walk also gets up close to the Tistoulet pits, where barytine, malachite and azurite were mined.
At the end of 1250, the construction site of Peyrepertuse received crushed tiles from Aguilar, which were used to make the sealant for the cisterns - made of crushed tiles, vinegar and lime. The water in the fortresses was used for cooking, washing, animals and also in building sites - making mortar for example. The cisterns were used to store large quantities of water, particularly useful during periods of conflict, when there were more people living in the castle. Rainwater was collected from the roofs and terraces, and transported to the cisterns via ceramic or lead pipes, before being filtered. To make sure the water didn't leak, the cisterns were covered and carefully sealed. Whether dug in the ground or built, round or rectangular, cisterns are always carefully designed and maintained constructions.
Aguilar inajulikana hasa kuwa kilima, au kilima, ambacho ni sehemu yenye kuvutia ya mandhari. Mji huo ulikadiriwa na Lagrange Abbey, na uliingia mikononi mwa familia ya Termes mwishoni mwa karne ya 11. Baada ya kupoteza ngome ya familia yake mwaka 1228, Aguilar ikawa makao makuu ya Olivier de Termes, shujaa mwenye nguvu wa Occitan, ambaye hapo awali alikuwa mshirika wa familia ya Trencavel. Siku moja baada ya vita vya Albigensian mwaka 1241, alisaini makubaliano ya kujisalimisha kwa ngome yake ya Aguilar, ambayo ilikuwa na kijiji, kanisa na ngome. Olivier de Termes alimsaidia Mfalme Louis IX, na akawa mmoja wa mashujaa wake waaminifu. Mnamo 1262, pamoja na ngome za Corbieres, Aguilar alijiunga na mstari wa ulinzi wa taji la Ufaransa dhidi ya ufalme wa Aragon. Pia ilipokea ubunifu wa karibuni zaidi katika usanifu-ujenzi wa Filipi. Sehemu ya kijiji hicho ilihamishwa ili kuimarisha nguvu za kijeshi za ngome na kilima chake. Baada ya Mkataba wa Pyrenees kushinikiza nyuma mpaka kwa upande mwingine wa mlima ridge, ngome walipoteza umuhimu wake wa kimkakati na aliachwa kukabiliana na upepo mkali Cers peke yake... Ukuta wa nje Nguzo za Aguilar na minara yake sita ya nusu mviringo hutoa kilima hicho sura yenye nguvu na yenye kupendeza. Jengo hilo lilijengwa mwishoni mwa karne ya 13 na mwanzoni mwa karne ya 14 ili kuimarisha ukuta wa nje wa awali, na linatoa eneo hilo umbo la kikaboni na linatoa ulinzi wenye nguvu. Minara sita ya ukuta wa nje imepangwa kwa njia ya ukuta wa pazia, kulingana na udhaifu wa ardhi. Muundo wao wa nusu mviringo, "uliofunguliwa kwenye koo", unamaanisha kwamba wakazi wa ngome, waliolindwa na ukuta wa ndani, wanaweza kuwaangalia. Hakuna mahali pa mshambuliaji kujificha. Ukuta wa ndani Ukuta wa ndani ulibadilisha ukuta wa awali wa karne ya kumi na mbili, na unatazama ndani ya ngome. Imeenea juu ya ua wa ndani, inajumuisha vyumba vya mmiliki wa ngome, mnara, kisima cha maji nk. "Kumbuka ubunifu wa kifalme ulio kinyume na sehemu ya mlima iliyo dhaifu zaidi: ukuta huo unakuwa na unene wa mita 2.8 na unachukua umbo la ""spur,"" uwezo wa kuvunja makombora yoyote." St Anne's Chapel Jengo hili dogo, iko juu ya headland nje ya kuta ngome, ni kusonga kutokana na unyenyekevu wake. Unaweza kuthamini utulivu unaotolewa na dari lake lenye matundu yaliyovunjika na apse yake yenye matundu ya robo-sphere. Sasa, njoo ukakabili hali ya hewa... Mji wenye ngome Katika eneo lenye miiba yenye harufu ya majira ya kiangazi, mabaki ya ukuta wa kijiji wenye ngome hutukumbusha maisha ya hapa. Nyumba ziko katika ngazi tofauti kwenye matuta, chini ya mteremko wa kukaribisha ambapo St Anne's Chapel iko. Kwa njia ya miongozo ya bure, utagundua bora ya Tucan-Aguilar: ngome ya Aguilar, kijiji cha Tucan, na uzuri wa asili. Inajumuisha maeneo yetu yote ya kupendwa.. Kutoka Tuchol, kutembea kwa muda mfupi wa kilomita 6 kutakupeleka kwenye mashamba ya mizabibu na heathland hadi Aguilar Castle. Katika heath, kuna miti mingi ya sanduku, kama ilivyo kawaida katika Corbières. Mti huo unaotunzwa vizuri katika bustani za Kifaransa unaachwa ukue kwa uhuru. Mbao yake nyeupe, laini na yenye kung'aa baada ya kupakwa rangi, hutumiwa kutengeneza kiganja cha visu, vipande vya mchezo wa chesi, vijiti, na sehemu za ala za muziki, kama vile filimbi na kinubi. Mti wa sanduku, ambao umeonyeshwa kupunguza homa, hutumiwa pia kupambana na ugonjwa wa rheumatism au ugonjwa wa ndui. Mvinyo wa jina la Fitou Vijiji tisa hutengeneza divai za jina la Fitou (maelezo ya asili iliyohifadhiwa), pamoja na Tuchan na Paziols, ambazo ziko karibu zaidi na Ngome ya Aguilar. Aina hizi za zabibu zenye tabia, zenye utajiri na tata, zinaonyesha nchi iliyo kati ya milima na bahari. Vyumba vingi vya kuonja divai vimefunguliwa kwa umma. Katika Mont Tauch ushirikiano mvinyo-tasting cellar katika Tuchan, unaweza kujaribu Fitou na Corbières appellation mvinyo na tamu Rivesaltes mvinyo. Kujiweka kwa ajili ya kilimo endelevu, hawa winegrowers kikamilifu kusaidia hifadhi ya asili (kupata zaidi kuhusu majina ya Aude). Ngome ya Tuchan ni kijiji cha karne ya 12. Wakati wa Enzi za Kati, ilijumuisha 'ngome' ya kati iliyozungukwa na mtaro. Kanisa hilo lilijengwa katika karne ya 14 ndani ya ngome, ambapo wakazi wa kijiji hicho wangeweza kujificha wakati wa vita, kama vile Vita vya Miaka mia moja na uporaji na waporaji wa barabara. Mwamba mkubwa wa mawe ya chokaa una njia zaidi ya 300 za kupanda ambazo zinaonyesha mandhari maridadi ya mashamba ya mizabibu ya bonde la Vingrau. Pia ni mahali pa kuanzia kwa ajili ya kutembea juu ya milima ya Serre na Pas de l'Escale, kutoa maoni ya kipekee juu ya plateau ya Tuchan na Mont Tauch, bahari, Albers na Canigou. Eneo la mashamba ya Vingrau linajulikana kwa mimea na wanyama wake mbalimbali. Mont Tauch, yenye umbo la'mstatili', inaweza kuonekana kwa maili nyingi kuzunguka, ikitazama uwanda wa Tuchan na Corbières yote ya Mashariki. Ni mtazamo bora ambao ni juu ya Ziara ya Jiografia. Kuanzia Aprili hadi Juni, maua madogo ya rangi ya zambarau'spéculaire en faux' huangaza kando za mlima huo. Juu ya hifadhi hii ya asili kuna turbine kumi na tano za upepo, ambako tai wa kifalme huruka juu. Kutembea karibu na migodi: Kilomita chache kutoka Paderne na Montgaillard, unaweza kutembea kwa njia ya Sarrat de Germa, ambayo hukuruhusu kukaribia migodi ya zamani. Utoaji madini huko Corbières ulianza katika Enzi za Kale na uliendelea hadi katikati ya karne ya 20. Mashimo mawili huko Montgaillard yalichimbwa kwa ajili ya madini ya risasi na shaba. Pia, mtindo huo unakaribia mashimo ya Tistoulet, ambako bariti, malakit, na azuriti zilipatikana. Mwishoni mwa mwaka wa 1250, eneo la ujenzi la Peyrepertuse lilipokea vigae vilivyopondwa kutoka Aguilar, ambavyo vilitumiwa kutengeneza kifuniko cha mabwawa - vilivyotengenezwa kwa vigae vilivyopondwa, siki na chokaa. Maji katika ngome yalitumiwa kupika, kuosha, wanyama na pia katika maeneo ya ujenzi - kwa mfano kutengeneza chokaa. Hifadhi hizo zilitumiwa kuhifadhi maji mengi, hasa wakati wa vita, wakati ambapo kulikuwa na watu wengi zaidi wanaoishi katika ngome hiyo. Maji ya mvua yalikusanywa kutoka kwenye paa na nyua, na kusafirishwa hadi kwenye matangi kupitia mabomba ya kauri au risasi, kabla ya kuchujwa. Ili kuhakikisha kwamba maji hayakutoa maji, mabwawa hayo yalifunikwa na kufungwa kwa uangalifu. Iwe imefunikwa ndani ya ardhi au imejengwa, ni mviringo au ni ya mstatili, mabwawa ni vitu vilivyobuniwa na kutunzwa kwa uangalifu.