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Origin and history

The castle of La Pomarède, mentioned since the 11th century, is mainly a 14th and 15th century building, with the exception of its oldest dungeon (late 11th - 12th centuries). Located on a slight eminence, it was protected by a trapezoidal enclosure and an artificial circular ditch. The main entrance, preceded by a bridge with three arches of the seventeenth century, gives access to an architectural complex marked by its seigneurial past.

The site is linked to the turbulent history of Lauragais, a strategic region during the Albigois Crusade (1208-1249). In 1211 La Pomarède, then a stronghold at the Count of Toulouse, was besieged by Simon de Montfort's troops. The castle then became the center of a barony associated with noble families such as the Viscounts of Caraman (XIVth century) or the Carmaing (XVth century).

In the 18th century, the castle belonged to Jean Emeric de Bruyères, Baron of Chalabre, and then changed hands several times before being sold to the municipality in 1950 by Jeanne-Marie-Louise of Auberjon, considered the last chestnut. Since 1997, part of the buildings have been home to the Hostellery of the Castle, while the fortified enclosure retains medieval elements such as a so-called tower of John XXII, associated with a papal legend of the fourteenth century.

The monument, inscribed in the Historical Monuments in 1995, includes protected elements such as the wall of enclosure with its scalables, the bridge, the ditch, as well as the facades and roofs of a building located in the courtyard. Its architecture reflects the successive adaptations, from medieval origins to modern eras.

The commune of La Pomarède, whose toponym evokes an old apple grove (occitan pomareda), is part of the landscape of Lauragais, a historical region known for its pastel culture and its role as a wheat attic of Languedoc. The castle, symbol of this heritage, remains a witness to the seigneurial dynamics and religious conflicts that marked medieval Occitanie.

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