Skip to content

1.10 Important dates

1165 Debate between Catholics and Cathars at Lombers near Albi.
1167 Cathar council met at St Felix-de-Caraman (now St Felix – Lauragais); creation of four episcopates at Albi, Agen, Carcassonne and Toulouse.
1208 Pierre de Castelnau, the Pope’s Legate is murdered near St Gilles.
1209 The Albigean crusade wanted by the Pope Innocent III begin.
Beziers is sacked.
Fall of Carcassonne and death of the Viscount Trencavel.
Simon de Montfort became the military head of the crusade.
First death at the stake at Castres: two Cathars are burned.
1210 Mutilation of the inhabitants of Bram. Fall of the fortresses of Minerve, Termes and Puivert.
140 Cathars burned at the stake at Minerve.
1211 Fall of Cabaret in March.
1 April and 3 May: Siege of Lavaur, 300 to 400 Cathars burned.
In June failure of the first siege of Toulouse.
August to October: battle of Castelnaudary.
1212 The Bas-Quercy, the Agenais and Commingues are taken.
1213 Battle of Muret; death of Pierre II of Aragon.
1215 Fourth Council of Latran; the Count of Toulouse,
Raymond VI, looses his rights to Simon de Montfort.
1216 Death of the Pope Innocent III, replaced by Honorius III.
1217 Raymond is back in Toulouse and is welcome by the inhabitants;
Second siege of Toulouse.
1218 Death of Simon de Montfort in Toulouse.
1222 Death of Raymond VI; Raymond VII becomes Count of Toulouse.
1223 Death of Philip August followed by Louis VIII.
1226 Creation of the 5th Cathar episcopate at Razès.
Beginning of the royal crusade of Louis VIII.
Parts of the South submit to the King of France.
Death of Louis VIII; Regency of Blanche de Castille.
1227 Death of Honorius III replaced by Gregory IX.
1229 The Count Raymond VII of Toulouse surrenders at Meaux;
The Cathars go into hiding.
The Council of Toulouse gives the legal bases to the Cathar repression in Languedoc.
1233 The Pope Gregory IX creates the Inquisition to suppress the Cathar heresy and entrust this court of law to the Dominicans.
1240 Peyrepertuse falls.
1242 Murder of two Inquisitors at Avignonet.
1243 Start of the siege of Montsegur.
1244 Montsegur is taken and the Parfaits burned at the stake.
1249 Death of Raymond VII of Toulouse.
1255 Fall of Queribus
1256 Fall of Puilaurens
1270 Death of Louis IX.
1271 The county of Toulouse becomes part of France.
1321 Guillaume Belibaste, the last known Parfait, is burned at the stake in Villerouge-Termenès. (l)