Castles

The first castle of Bonaguil was built in the 13th century above a natural grotto which was incorparated into the dungeons of the castle (and still exists today). The castle's owners fought on the side of the English in the Hundred Years War and the castle was heavily damaged and changed owners several times.

It came into the possession of the wealthy Bérenger de Roquefeuil who was in a bitter rivalry with the French king. In defiance of the French king's orders, Bérenger used his wealth to heavily fortify the castle in the 15th century. The fortifications were so extensive that the castle was considered "unconquerable" for an army at the time. Several defensive rings and a complicated layout made it very hard for attackers to even approach the castle's gates. Yet it was never sieged and quickly lost its strategic relevancy.

Unlike other castles, it was largely left alone during the French Revolution and remained mostly intact, though some parts of the castles were neglected over the centuries. Still, it was considered such a prime example of a late Medieval castle that it was extensively studied, most famously by the French architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc and the British archeologist Thomas Edward Lawrence, better known as Lawrence of Arabia (before his time in the Arabian peninsula).