Travel Guide Fenouillet

At the confluence of the Mediterranean and mountain worlds and at the gateway to the Boucheville forest, Fenouillet is a village composed of several hamlets that are reached from Caudiès by a winding road that passes near the superb gorges of Sant Jaume (see Hiking file). From the beginning of the Middle Ages the lords of Fenouillet chose the village as capital for its strategic position and built a castrum in the purest Occitan style. The annexation of Viscounty to the Kingdom of France in 1258 and the dispossession of the lands of Viscount (who took sides in the Cathar cause) transferred the royal powers to Caudiès de Fenouillèdes. However, Fenouillet, now placed on the new border line, retained its strategic role and the Sabarda Tower and Castel Fizel were added to the defensive system of Château Saint-Pierre to monitor the four cardinal points and face any attack. Recent archaeological research and restoration work has highlighted the presence of a monastery dedicated to Saint Peter. Little by little, the site reveals its mysteries...