Chateau des Comptes de Foix, a photo from Midi-Pyrénées, Sud

Photographer's Note

Foix is a French town and commune. Once the former capital of the County of Foix, today it is the Préfecture or administrative centre of the Ariège department in southwestern France. It is located in the Midi-Pyrénées region, lying south of Toulouse, close to the border with Spain and Andorra.

The Romans built a fort on the rocky hill where the Château de Foix now overlooks the town, which stands at the confluence of the Ariège and Arget rivers. The town of Foix probably owes its origin to an oratory founded by Charlemagne, which afterwards became the Abbey of Saint Volusianus in 849. The founding of the abbey in 849 in effect led to the development of the town around it in the tenth to twelfth centuries. The city reached its peak in the fourteenth century.

The castle, whose foundations date back to the early tenth century, was a strong fortress that withstood the repeated attacks of Simon de Montfort IV between 1211 and 1217, during the Albigensian Crusade. In 1272, when the Count of Foix refused to recognize the sovereignty of the king of France, Philip the Bold personally took the leadership of an expedition against the city; subsequently the Count surrendered. In 1290, at a meeting of the Béarn region and the county of Foix, the city was practically abandoned by the Counts.

In 1536 began the first Reformation preaching in Foix, and in 1579 the Catholic church of Montgauzy was destroyed. The same fate awaited the abbey and its church in 1581. The following year, Foix was retaken by Catholics, and in 1589 the Count of Foix, Henry of Navarre, was crowned King of France and became Henry IV.

Gaston Phoebus was the last Count of Foix to have lived in the castle; by the sixteenth century the castle had lost its military purpose. It was subsequently used as a prison until 1864.

(Source: Wikipedea)

Fis2, holmertz, pajaran, ChrisJ, papagolf21, alvaraalto, pierrefonds, jhm, Cricri, cornejo, mcmtanyel trouve(nt) cette note utile

Critiques | Translate

Nicou (166102) 2018-01-02 0:54

Hello

quelle vue de ce château depuis la rue quelles tours qui ressortent trois deux carrées et une ronde et le rendu sur la paroi sueprbe cadrage et mise en valeur.
Bravo et amitié
Nciou

Fis2 (120943) 2018-01-02 1:28

Witaj Stephen!
Wonderful view, beautiful castle.
Good POV and composition.
Nice colors and light.
Well done.
NIce day.

holmertz (68936) 2018-01-02 2:14

Hello Stephen,
It's a nice square and the castle on top of the steep rock provides a perfect background. You treated the light and colours very well.
Best regards,
Gert

pajaran (76187) 2018-01-02 2:33

Dobar dan.
Lep pogled, interesantan i dobar tekst ...
Lepo pokazano, dobra perspektiva i kontrast, lepe boje, lepo uhvacen trenutak sa oblacima koji dolaze. Lep trg sa fontanom i fasade kuca, lep zamak na brdu.
Zelim vam lep dan, sve najbolje.
Paja.

Good day.
Nice view, interesting and good text ...
Beautifully shown, good perspective and contrast, nice colors, nice moment with the clouds that come. A beautiful square with a fountain and a facade of houses, a beautiful castle on the hill.
I wish you a nice day, all the best.

ChrisJ (132502) 2018-01-02 2:39

Hello Stephen,

The bg castle certainly has a commanding view of the town and surroundings, but I doubt if the prisoners enjoyed the view, even if they had one. The contrast with the more modern fg city architecture is great. Tfs!

papagolf21 (124649) 2018-01-02 2:39

Bonjour, cher ami Stephen,
Une fois de plus, grâce à tes prises de vue je découvre de nouvelles régions françaises, c'est fort plaisant. Un grand merci.
1 nouvelle année,
10 sourires chaleureux,
100 pensées bienveillantes,
1000 voeux de bonheur,
300 belles photos
Très bonne année 2018 !
Amitiés.
Philippe

dkmurphys (73262) 2018-01-02 4:05

Hello,
Very nice postcard with the hill castle and the old charming town at the base. Good POV.

Have a great new year!

Daniel

alvaraalto (28982) 2018-01-02 4:09

Hello Stephen
Lovely picture of the castle protecting the village below. Interesting to see the different architecture.
You found a perfect POV for this scene.
Well done. Have a nice day Groet Rob

pierrefonds (79549) 2018-01-02 4:54

Hi Stephen,

The buildings are framing well the castle. The point of view is showing the details of the buildings and of the Compte-de-Foix castle. The good luminosity is giving nice tints to the colors. Have a nice day.

Pierre

jhm (172982) 2018-01-02 6:46

Hello Stephen,

Almost a desolate village, everyone sleep or sit in the restaurant.
Sharpness and colours are pleasant.
Composition and presentation are superb.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John.

Cricri (139082) 2018-01-02 8:14

Hello Stephen
Fantastique présentation du château de Foix sur ces gros rochers, vue la première fois aussi en 2011,
j'aime le POV qui inclus la fontaine, belle présentation
Amitiés
cricri

rychem (53679) 2018-01-02 8:52

Beautiful view of the imposing castle towering over a calm town, very nice composition and perfect format, excellent depth
regards Ryszard

cornejo (53708) 2018-01-02 10:26

Hello Stephen, very good photograph of this beautiful and interesting composition with the castle above, very well captured in this beautiful image, with good sharpness, light, color and quality. Very good and interesting work perfectly done, my congratulations my friend. Thanks for sharing this beautiful work.

Good night and happy week.
Best wishes from the south of Spain.
Angel.

Silvio1953 (168767) 2018-01-02 10:42

Ciao Stephen, great view of fantastic castle, excellent POV, splendid light and wonderful colors very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

carlo62 (65921) 2018-01-02 16:05

Ciao Stephen
molto bella questa composizione, mi piace vedere la piazza di questo villaggio sormontata dall'antico castello che mostra ancora le sue torri.
Buon anno
Carlo

jemaflor (112184) 2018-01-02 23:32

Salut Stephen
Bien cadrée cette vue avecen point fort les tours perchées, bon effet avec ces lignes fuyantes formées en bas par les immeubles, bien aussi la présence de couleur avec le restaurant.

Tue (54346) 2018-01-02 23:49

Hello Stephen,
I really like the combination of the charming façades of the town in the foreground and the towers and walls of the castle rising up on top of the cliffs in the background. I like the peaceful mood and the bright sunlight. The restaurant on the left adds some fine colours.
Lars

mcmtanyel (39189) 2018-01-28 19:53

Hello Stephen,
I like the POV in this frame, the buildings on this level seem to be forming a V to point to the fort. The purple canopies of L'Atlas Restaurant are eye-catching.
Regards,
MT