Ancient and Pre-Roman Era

Prehistoric Roots:

The region shows traces of human activity dating back to the Quaternary period, with discoveries of flint tools, polished stones, and dolmens.

Celtic and Roman Influence:

By 600 BCE, Ligurian and Iberian settlers arrived, later merging with Celts to form the Celtiberian culture. The Romans assimilated the region, introducing roads and Christianity by the 3rd century CE. Villages like Mata (later Montlaur) emerged on elevated sites, possibly named after the goddess Diana (Val de Diane).

Medieval Montlaur (12th–17th Century)

Fortified Beginnings:

Around 1160, local lords built the Château de Montlaur on Pech Matus rock to defend against conflicts between the Counts of Barcelona and Toulouse. The fortress had double walls and gates (e.g., Portail de Bissens), but was largely ruined by the 14th century.

Cathar and Wars of Religion:

The lords of Montlaur briefly embraced Cathar heresy in the 13th century before being ousted by Simon de Montfort. In 1632, the Baron de Mux besieged the town during a rebellion against Louis XIII, damaging the 14th-century church.

Rebuilding:

Gabriel de Barthélémy de Gramont rebuilt the church in 1636, carving "Vive le roy" into its keystone. Stones from the ruined fort were repurposed for village expansion.

At the Domaine de Montlaur, a 19th-century estate with lush gardens, a crenellated tower hides a bizarre historical relic: a donkey-operated water pump! In the early 1900s, a donkey tirelessly walked in circles to power a mechanism that drew water from a well into a tower, supplying the château and its gardens. Electricity eventually replaced the donkey, but the tower remains as a whimsical nod to rural ingenuity

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