Anchored in the relief of the Hautes Corbières, Peyrepertuse rises to an altitude of 800 metres amidst the garrigues, overlooking the small village of Duilhac.
From the top of the promontory, the view embraces the nearby castle of Quéribus, some 5 kilometers away.
The Peyrepertuse site was occupied in Roman times, from the early 1st century BC.
Part of the Spanish March, the first mention of the castle dates back to 1020, when the Pérapertusès region was under the control of the Catalan counts of Besalù.
Subsequently, Peyrepertuse came under the control of the Counts of Barcelona and then, towards the middle of the 12th century, the Kings of Aragon.
During the crusade against the Albigensians, Guillaume de Peyrepertuse was excommunicated in 1224 for refusing to submit.
After the failure of the siege of Carcassonne, Guillaume submitted and the castle became a French possession in 1240.
In 1258, the Treaty of Corbeil fixed the border between France and Aragon for four centuries.
Peyrepertuse became a royal fortress at the southern limit of the Crown.
By the end of the 13th century, it had become a stronghold with exceptional defenses.
During the winter of 1367-1368, Peyrepertuse was a refuge for Henri de Trastamare, pretender to the kingdom of Castile.
The Treaty of the Pyrenees (1659) moved the frontier to its present location, diminishing the castle's strategic importance.
However, it retained a small garrison until the French Revolution.
In 1950, the first campaigns to consolidate the monument began.
Archaeologists discovered domestic ovens on the site. A 2.80-meter-long vaulted passageway provided access to the Font de la Jaqueta spring below the fortress.
Château de Peyrepertuse
11350 Duilhac-sous-Peyrepertuse
Phone: 06 71 58 63 36
Phone: 04 82 53 24 07
Tel.: 04 68 45 24 05
