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The Cité de Carcassonne (Occitan: Ciutat de Carcassona [siwˈtat de kaɾkaˈsunɔ]) is a medieval citadel located in the French city of Carcassonne, in the Aude department, Occitania region. It is situated on a hill on the right bank of the river Aude, in the south-eastern part of the city proper.
The attack on the Bastille in the French Revolution – though afterwards remembered mainly for the release of the handful of prisoners incarcerated there – was to considerable degree motivated by the structure's being a Royal citadel in the midst of revolutionary Paris.
Thirty years after the commencement of building, a conflict between France and Spain placed the citadel into the heart of conflict. On April 24, 1596, after Fort Risban and Fort Nieulay had already fallen, the inhabitants of Calais found refuge at the Citadel of Calais in order to flee from the troops of the Albert VII, Archduke of Austria, Governor of the Flanders.
Within the citadel on the side of La Place de Manœuvre a small Baroque-style chapel was built. Outside, Le Mur des Fusillés (the wall of the people executed by a firing squad) pays tribute to the 218 members of the French Resistance shot in the citadel's ditch during World War II. [4]
The Citadel of Lille (French: Citadelle de Lille; Dutch: Citadel van Rijsel) is a pentagonal citadel of the city wall of Lille, in France. It was built between 1667 and 1670. [ 1 ] It hosts the Corps de réaction rapide France .
The Citadel overlooks the old quarter of the city, which is located within the oxbow, and has views of the city and its surroundings. The fortification is well preserved. Today it is an important tourist site (over a quarter of a million visitors per year) due both to its own characteristics and because it is the site of several museums.
The strategic importance of Cap Diamant was recognized by the French as early as 1608. Several defensive fortifications were built on the site first by the French and then by the British after their conquest of New France. The modern citadel was built from 1820 to 1850, in an effort to secure Quebec City against a potential American attack.
Following the Battle of Marengo and the proclamation of the First French Empire, Napoleon expanded and renovated the fort to support the operations of the French army in Italy. During the French occupation, the citadel became one of the most important fortresses in the French Empire, since it was intended to be the "eastern gateway" of France.