The Cathars: Béziers to Quéribus

The army reached Béziers on 21 July 1209, after the bishop had drawn up a list of 222 people, mostly Cathars, and a meeting at the cathedral decided they could not be handed over. Next day the city fell, and those who could run sought refuge in churches, among them the cathedral. It burned, and reconstruction began in 1215. The legate's letter claimed almost 20,000 dead; later historians think that far too high. A rebuilt cathedral stands on the same site today.

Visitor guidance: The rebuilt cathedral stands in the old town of Béziers; check opening hours locally.

Next target: Carcassonne, packed with refugees. The Crusaders covered the 45 miles from Béziers in six days and arrived on 1 August 1209. By 7 August they had cut the city's water supply. Viscount Raymond Roger sought talks, was taken prisoner under truce, and the city surrendered on 15 August. His lands passed to Simon de Montfort. The walled Cité, with double walls 3 km long and 52 towers, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997.

Visitor guidance: The Cité is a medieval citadel on a hill above the River Aude, in the south-eastern part of Carcassonne.

Four castles - Cabaret, Tour Régine, Surdespine and Quertinheux - crown a rocky crest north of Carcassonne. They sheltered Cathar Perfects, and Cathar bishops stayed at Cabaret. Attacked in December 1209, Pierre Roger de Cabaret repulsed the assault, and Simon de Montfort faced three castles protected by sheer rock. The resistance held until the fortress of Termes fell in November 1210, after which the lord of Cabaret surrendered. The ruins can still be seen along the ridge.

Visitor guidance: The ruins stand on a crest north of Carcassonne.

A group of Cathars took refuge in Minerve after Béziers. Simon de Montfort besieged the village, set up four catapults, and aimed the largest, called Malvoisine or "bad neighbour", at the town's well. With the only water supply cut, the commander of the 200-strong garrison negotiated a surrender. Those who refused to convert, 140 Cathars, were burned on 22 July. The village still sits on top of the gorge of the River Cesse, a naturally strong defensive position.

Visitor guidance: Minerve is a small village on a gorge of the River Cesse.

In 1233 Montségur became "the seat and head" of the Cathar Church. After inquisitors were murdered at Avignonet on 28 May 1242, a royal army of about 10,000 men came against about 100 fighters on the peak. On 16 March 1244 the Cathar group, led by Bishop Bertrand Marty, went down to the pyre. At the foot of the mountain a stele marks the Prat dels Cremats. The ruin on top is not the Cathar castle but a later royal fortress.

Visitor guidance: The commemorative stele stands at the base of the mountain; the ruin on top dates from a later fortress.

Quéribus is sometimes called the last Cathar stronghold. In 1255 a French army under Olivier de Termes, himself a former Cathar knight, was sent against it. Its defender, Chabert de Barbaira, surrendered without a fight in unclear circumstances. What became of the Cathars inside is unknown. The castle stands on the highest peak for kilometres around, at 728 metres. After restoration work between 1998 and 2002 it is accessible to visitors.

Visitor guidance: The castle is accessible to visitors; it stands at 728 metres, the highest peak for kilometres around.