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Portes castle's subsoil looks like a real Gruyere cheese

The castle | Luca Romano / CC-BY-SA
Castle Portes castle

Do you know why the powerful Portes castle found itself in such a dilapidation? Come on, I wait for your suggestions: wars, epidemics, earthquakes... not at all!

Not really. And yet, wars of Religion had just burst in the Cévennes: at that time, the area was conquered by Protestants...

In fact, a subsoil rich in coal, exploited since 1870, transformed the quiet village of Portes into a real gruyere. They dug galleries without paying any attention to houses and their foundations.

And the extraction of the precious fuel started. But, about 30 years later, boom! Galleries collapsed. One solution was considered: to destroy the village and rebuilt it further on a stable soil.

What about the castle? Well, Portes wasn't well, because of the cracked walls and the ramshackle foundations. Fortunately, an association was founded in 1930 in order to save the building, raised in the 11th century.

About the the author

Vinaigrette
I'm fond of strolls and History, with juicy and spicy details!