Aigues Mortes - a fortified town
Aigues Mortes (population approx 8,400) is an old fortified town in the South of France. Nearby is the Camargue, Europe's largest river delta, famous for it's lagoons, rice fields and free-running horses.
The entire medieval town is surrounded on four sides by high walls, and its' narrow streets contain a wide selection of homes, shops, bars and restaurants.
Aigues-Mortes is steeped on history. It was conceived by King (and eventually 'Saint') Louis IX in 1240, and the walls were finished by his son in 1302. It was built to give Louis and his armies access to the sea, at a time when his younger brother Charles (King of Naples and Aragon) occupied the coast to the east (Provence) and south (Roussillon). In the 14th century, Aigues-Mortes was transformed into a prison, in which Templars were kept.
Today it is a very popular tourist destination. During daytime in the height of Summer the town is packed with sightseers but outside that period it can be a delightful place to walk through, taking in the sights and history. Ernest Hemingway's third major posthumous work, the novel The Garden of Eden, takes place in Aigues-Mortes.
On payment of a fee it's possible to walk all the way round the battlements. It takes about 45 minutes to do so.
For thousands of years salt has been extracted from sea water locally in "Etangs" and in the middle ages the source of salt added to the importance of the town. Sea salt is still produced this way and is available locally.
Aigues Mortes - a fortified town
Aigues Mortes (population approx 8,400) is an old fortified town in the South of France. Nearby is the Camargue, Europe's largest river delta, famous for it's lagoons, rice fields and free-running horses.
The entire medieval town is surrounded on four sides by high walls, and its' narrow streets contain a wide selection of homes, shops, bars and restaurants.
Aigues-Mortes is steeped on history. It was conceived by King (and eventually 'Saint') Louis IX in 1240, and the walls were finished by his son in 1302. It was built to give Louis and his armies access to the sea, at a time when his younger brother Charles (King of Naples and Aragon) occupied the coast to the east (Provence) and south (Roussillon). In the 14th century, Aigues-Mortes was transformed into a prison, in which Templars were kept.
Today it is a very popular tourist destination. During daytime in the height of Summer the town is packed with sightseers but outside that period it can be a delightful place to walk through, taking in the sights and history. Ernest Hemingway's third major posthumous work, the novel The Garden of Eden, takes place in Aigues-Mortes.
On payment of a fee it's possible to walk all the way round the battlements. It takes about 45 minutes to do so.
For thousands of years salt has been extracted from sea water locally in "Etangs" and in the middle ages the source of salt added to the importance of the town. Sea salt is still produced this way and is available locally.