Château Sainte Marie

Esterre, France

Château Sainte Marie dates from the tenth century. Built by the Counts of Bigorre it fell under the English rule in the 14th century but was be quickly reconquered by the inhabitants. Free access is on foot, by an easy path, from the village of Esterre.

Address

Arrailles, Esterre, France

See all sites in Esterre

Details

Founded: 10th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in France
Historical period: Frankish kingdoms (France)

Rating

4.5/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Rob J (2 years ago)
Very nice medieval festival, shows with horses, sword fighting and an extremely good fireworks show!

Rubén Recio Carreño (2 years ago)
Nice views of the village and historic place.

Brad Frewin (3 years ago)
Went to the medieval fête at the castle in August. Absolutely ? fantastic. Good food. Good prices. Great people

Rebekah Kiecker (3 years ago)
Spectacular views from above the city. You will need to hike a little to get there, but the trail is easy to follow.

Laura Graham (3 years ago)
Beautiful castle and lovely view over town. Peaceful in June! There are picnic benches also.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Photo from Flickr, copyright Andy Hay

Historic Site of the week

Argos Theater

The ancient Argos Theater was built in 320 BC. and is located in Argos, Greece against Larissa Hill. Nearby from this site is Agora, Roman Odeon, and the Baths of Argos. The theater is one of the largest architectural developments in Greece and was renovated in ca 120 AD.

The Hellenistic theater at Argos is cut into the hillside of the Larisa, with 90 steps up a steep incline, forming a narrow rectilinear cavea. Among the largest theaters in Greece, it held about 20,000 spectators and is divided by two landings into three horizontal sections. Staircases further divide the cavea into four cunei, corresponding to the tribes of Argos A high wall was erected to prevent unauthorized access into the theatron and may have helped the acoustics, but it is said the sound quality is still very good today.

Around 120 CE, both theaters were renovated in the Roman style.