In 1232, the Cathars found shelter with the owner of the castle of Montsegur, Raymond de Péreille. This castle was given to him in 1187 by the Countess de Foix - Esclarmonde ("Light of the World"), who commissioned him to restore the destroyed castle of Montsegur - the Temple of the Sun - on the sacred mountain of the Celts. And the fortress of Montsegur became the center of the Cathars, the temple of the Spirit, rebuilt according to the drawings of the Cathars. Esclarmonde became one of the preachers of this faith.
Raymond de Pereilles named his daughter after the Countess de Foix - Esclarmonde. Since childhood, he instilled in her a love of faith and independence.
At 18, she marries Cathar believer Bernard de Niort. They fiercely defend their faith. In 1242, the knights of the castle of Montsegur marched against their enemies in Avignon, destroying the inquisitors there. The angry inquisitors turned to the king for help. The Montsegur fortress, left practically without protection, was besieged by many thousands of French troops. Fifteen knights and fifty soldiers defended themselves in the castle for almost a year. The steep slopes of the mountain helped the defenders. The brave Esclarmonde, knowing the underground tunnels of the castle, brought food and weapons to the besieged.
For the first time, the crusaders used a catapult during the siege of Montsegur castle, thereby showing their superiority. Realizing that defeat could not be avoided, the Cathars asked for a 15-day truce. During this time, having performed their rituals, the Cathars prepared for the surrender of the fortress. And on March 16, 1244, the Montsegur fortress fell. The knights did not surrender alive, and the families of high-ranking Cathars, 225 people, were burned by the royal troops at the stake at the foot of this mountain. They say the fire consumed their singing. It was a defeat. But not the Cathars, who did not renounce their religious beliefs and were strong in spirit. They chose death rather than freedom, with a renunciation of faith. Esclarmonde died with everyone in the fire. The site of their burning, called the Field of the Burnt / Сhamp des Crémat, now stands a monument.
But according to legend, four monks took refuge in the dungeon of the castle and left it, descending on a rope along a steep mountain from a height of 1200 m, taking with them the main treasure of the Cathars - the Grail, which contained the blood of Jesus. A cup, the keeper of which was the Great Esclarmonde.
The Cathars are said to have witnessed the life of Christ on earth. They knew that the descendants of Jesus founded the Merovingian dynasty - a kind of the Holy Grail. Supporters of this version are sure that the owner of the Holy Grail gains holiness, but on the condition that his soul and heart are pure. Legend has it that before the death of the Countess de Foix, Esclarmonde in 1225 came to the foot of Mount Tabor (near the castle of Montsegur). Raising her hands to the sky, she hid the Grail in the parted rocks of the mountains. Then she turned into a white dove and flew into the heavens. The White Lady periodically appears on the mountain, mourning the victims of this fortress. Thunder roars, water flows down like a downpour. Montsegur Castle confirms the existence of Monsalvat Castle - the Castle of the Holy Grail.
Promotional video:
Already in our times, studying the traces on the walls of the castle of Montsegur, scientists came to the conclusion that this is a diagram of a dungeon that leads from the castle to the gorge. In the underground labyrinths, the remains of the guards and the lead pentagon - the symbol of the Cathars - were found. After all, the castle of Montsegur was also pentagonal. And on a high mountain it looked very much like a ship - maybe "Noah's Ark"? On the buckles found, an image of a bee, a symbol of immortality and rebirth, was found. There are many common symbols between the Cathars and the Knights of the Templar Order. After all, later it was the knights of the Order of the Templars who began to be called the knights of the Grail. Perhaps the Cathars who escaped the Inquisition joined the Order of the Templars and handed over the Grail for safekeeping.
Now the Montsegur castle is in ruins, but pilgrims still come here. Perhaps the solution to the mystery of all time is still there …
***
At the beginning of the 20th century, the book of the German scientist Otto Rahn "The Crusade Against the Grail" was published. He tried to unravel the myths of Montsegur by linking the Cathars and the Grail. The Nazis became interested in this idea at the dawn of their formation, studying German racial and cultural ancestry. The Nazis organized expeditions to abandoned castles, monasteries and mountain caves in the hope of finding the Grail. Some said that the Chalice and the treasures of the last Merovingian king, Dagobert, were found in a secret room in Montsegur castle and transported to Prussia. The Nazis installed the Holy Grail on a marble pedestal in the Wewelsburg castle.
During the Second World War, having occupied a position in the castle of Montsegur, the 10th German army fought desperately for 4 months. Allied forces launched attack after attack. A large number of soldiers were killed at the foot of the mountain. The fortress was almost completely destroyed under the blows of powerful artillery. And when the forces of the Nazis were already running out, a flag with a pagan symbol - a Celtic cross - was raised over the castle, calling out the higher powers for help. But higher powers do not help Evil.
And on March 16, 1944, on the day of the 700th anniversary of the fall of Montsegur Castle, witnesses said that they saw German planes flying over the ruins of the castle, lined up in the form of a Celtic cross. What is it? An attempt to join the great Order of the Knights Templar ?! …
On the day of Germany's surrender in 1945, the Holy Grail disappeared without a trace from the German castle of Wewelsburg. Did the Nazis have it?
History claims that explorer Otto Rahn did find the key to the Templar treasures, but! In 1939, he took this secret with him to his grave, taking potassium cyanide, not wanting to reveal the secret to the Nazis.
