\b0 An ancient Roman colony, set at the crossroads of France and Spain and on one of the main line
s of communication between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, Carcassonne owes much of its present appearance to the decision of St Louis to build a fortified city here, as a symbol of royal power in the land of the Cathar heresy. The king created the l
ower settlement on the left bank of the Adour and had the powerful walls of the City (a work continued by his son Philip the Bold) built on top of ancient foundations. This fortified enclosure, heavily and perhaps excessively restored in the nineteenth c
entury, is unique in Europe. The cathedral of Saint-Etienne and the castle complete this suggestive vestige of medieval France.
