A visit to Minerve and the Minervois in Southern France

Minerve, medieval village of the Minervois in the south-west of France. Minerve, one of the "plus beaux villages de France"boasts an exceptional site and gave the area its name, Minervois. Built on a stony ridge, the village of Minerve is an island of rock embraced by the two rivers that carved it, the Briant on the northeast side, the Cesse on the northwest. It is well worth following the winding road along the rugged gorge of the Cesse which opens dramatically just above the village. It is named the Cesse ("cease" in French) because it disappears in the ground only to reappear miles further at Bize-Minervois, cold and fresh in a maize of limestone corridors carved in the rock. Minerve is built in a spectacular site, one that helps you understand the events linked to its history. A stronghold during religious conflicts of the Middle Ages and a shelter for the persecuted Cathares, it was besieged for seven weeks by Simon de Montfort in 1210 and 140 Cathares were executed in the name of religion at the outcome of the siege. Today the gentle and symbolic sculpture of a dove stands by the 11th century church as a memorial to the victims of one of many shameful events in the history of men. Much of the village has been destroyed but walking up and down its little streets offers many opportunities to discover stones, old windows, small shops, amazing little terraces overlooking the chasm, and to get the special feel of being on a rock island separated from the land by two deep valleys, full of caves, nooks and crannies. On a hot, lazy day you will park outside the village and cross the river gorge on an old stone bridge leading to the door once protected by a herse (portcullis). Walk up the main street to the top of the village past the candela - all that is left of the castle- then to the dolmen up the road and above the village. Wander the little streets, past the small, but interesting museums which recreate and explain the Cathare tragedy of the Middle Ages, visit the several well-inventoried gift shops and art galleries. A walk in the bottom of the gorge will take you to the "ponts naturels" and the deep caves carved by the Cesse over millions of years of relentless erosion; in the coolness of the caves and the heat of the gorge let your imagination run with the lives of villagers of the past assailed one day by men from the north. Today Minerve has good fare indeed: for us choosing a spot for lunch meant walking up and down several times to decide what to eat in this quiet, secluded and very special village. We chose La Table des Troubadours, perfect for the land of the Occitan. We had a delightful plat du jour on a breezy terrace and savoured the meal of Moules à la Catalane (mussels Catalonian style) that the chef created that day. He brings back fresh fare from the market in Narbonne and invents lovely things with seafood, meat, herbs, tomatoes and spices. We were very warmly welcome at the Troubadours' terrace, surrounded by tourists from all over Europe, but in a quiet pleasant atmosphere with excellent service. The patron also serves his own wine. Then, all good things having an end we crossed the stone bridge again to find our car in the parking across the way, free our space for another visitor and waved "au revoir" to the young lady who manages the parking. We took one more look at Minerve on her island of rock facing the catapult, replica of Malvoisine (bad neighbor in medieval French), one of the war machine that Simon de Montfort and his men mercilessly used, in the 13th century, to force the village to surrender; then we left Minerve, steeped in history and sheltered from the world around. A few stops in the small villages between Minerve and Villeneuve-Minervois is a chance to see more of the southern Romanesque architecture of the region, to marvel at the small, tidy vineyards or to stop and sample local wines to take home. A stop at Rieux-Minervois to buy some bread and tomates farcies was the unexpected opportunity to discover la Rotonde, Rieux's treasure, tucked in a tiny square. "Don't leave Rieux without visiting La Rotonde" advised a customer at the charcuterie," c'est une MERVEILLE", she added stressing the right syllable with the southern accent of the area; and she was right: missing the 12th century church built around the number 7 would have been out of the question. The small villages of the Minervois have a true authenticity about them as much because of the surroundings and the architecture as because of the way people there preserve traditions. If you visit the Minervois you will surely witness this and you may find yourself in the middle of the preparations for a wedding or in the wake of a village funeral and realise that the locals really go about their usual life amidst vineyards, imposing architecture and history under the southern sun, between sea and mountains.

 For more information about the south of France, visit www.cevenneslangues.com.