The Hôtel des Invalides (commonly called Les Invalides) is an architectural ensemble located in the 7th arrondissement in Paris (France), whose construction dates back to the 17th century. It was in fact ordered by Louis XIV on February 24, 1670 with the…

The Suda de Lleida or King’s Castle (cat. La suda de Lleida o castell del Rei) was the castle or alcazaba of the city of Lleida, of Andalusian origin (Lleida province, Catalonia, Spain). It is located on the hill of La Seu Vella. After an important restoration…

Socoa Fort in Ciboure is located in the Atlantic Pyrenees Department (Pyrénées-Atlantiques) in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. It was built under King Louis XIII (father of the “Sun King”), and then improved by Sebastien Vauban – a famous French engineer…

Hostalric Castle-Fortress is a medieval fortification in the municipality of Hostalric (Selva), Girona province,  Catalonia, Spain. It is located on a narrow basalt rock outcrop on the left bank of the Tordera river, at its confluence with the Arbúcies stream.…

From 16 to 23 August in the Conflent region (Pyrenees), classes at the Catalan Summer University (Universitat Catalana d’Estiu) will be held. Since 1968, the university has been organising its conferences at the Pau Casals Hostel on the site of the Liceu…

Badajoz is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is situated close to the Portuguese border, on the left bank of the river Guadiana. Its geostrategic and border importance conditioned its history as a…

Fouras, also known as Fouras-les-Bains, (Fr. Fouras-les-Bains) is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France. It lies 34 km south of La Rochelle and 20 km west of Rochefort on the Charente river estuary.…

The citadel of Château-d’Oléron is a military structure built from 1630 to 1704 to protect the southern part of the island of Oléron. It is one of the main historical monuments of the town of Château-d’Oléron, in the department of Charente-Maritime, Nouvelle…

The Fort de Fouras or Semaphore de Fouras is the medieval fortified castle in Fouras, a small town located in Aunis in the Charente-Maritime department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France. It is also improperly referred to Fort Vauban…

Fort Louvois, which is known locally as Fort Chapus or Fort du Chapus, is a fortification built between 1691 and 1694, during the reign of Louis XIV, on the Chapus islet, and is about 400 metres (1,300 ft) offshore in the town of Bourcefranc-le-Chapus in…

Antibes (fr. Antibes) is a coastal city in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region, France, between Cannes and Nice. It’s a popular part of the French Riviera of the Mediterranean resorts of France. Antibes gave its ancient…

The Salses castle (fortress) is a modern age castle in a communal territory of Salses in the Rosselló comarca in Northern Catalunya (Pyrénées-Orientales, France, Occitania). From a chronological perspective it is the third of the Salses castles, after the…

Perpignan is a commune in the south of France, prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales department and fourth most populous city in the Occitania region. Historically and culturally, the commune, former continental capital of the Kingdom of Majorca, is in Roussillon…

Évol Écouter or Èvol, is a hamlet and former commune attached to the commune of Olette, in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in the Pyrenees in France (Occitania). It is part of the association – The most beautiful villages of France. Located two kilometres…

Villefranche de Conflent (Villefranche-de-Conflent in French or Vilafranca de Conflent in Catalan) is a commune, located in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in the Pyrenees in France (Occitania). All signs at the entrance to the city and Fort Liberia are…

Fort Liberia (fr. Fort Libéria) is located in the city Villefranche-de-Conflent (France) in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in the Pyrenees in France (Occitania), at the confluence of the Têt and Сadi rivers. The Fort was built by the French marshal, Vauban…

Prehistory Port-Vendres (Occitania, France) has existed since the Iron Age, when it was used as a port connected to the Iberian settlement of Illiberis (now Elna). Ancient History In the first century of our era, the Roman geographer Pomponi Mela mentions…

Fort de Bellegarde is a 17th-century fortification on the border between France and Spain in the Pyrenees, above the town of Le Perthus in the Pyrénées-Orientales department (Occitania). At the time, it was used to control and defend the Perthus pass. The…

Llo is a commune located in the southwest of the Pyrénées-Orientales department, in the Occitania region (Pyrenees, France). Historically and culturally, the commune is in the Cerdanya, a high plain at an average altitude of 1,200 m above sea level, which…