The most beautiful medieval cities and fortified cities around the world
The ramparts medieval cities used to protect themselves from the enemy. From a distant past to our days, fortified walls have been of great necessity for the cities that held it. The enclosure could only be penetrated through the doors, and the doors closed after a curfew every night. Today the best-preserved cities attract tourists from all over the world! Here are 12 who deserve to be discovered...
York
Flickr – Karsten Berlin
York is an ancient city in the north of England . The city was founded by the Romans, taken by the Angles (peuple), captured by the Vikings and finally incorporated into the kingdom of England in 954. It has the largest Gothic Cathedral in Northern Europe. Since the Roman era, the city has been defended by its walls many times. The majority of the remaining ramparts, which surround the entire medieval city, date from the 12-14th century.
Harar
Flickr – RogerBurks
Harar is a former fortified city in eastern Ethiopia. For centuries, Harar was an important shopping center, connected by commercial routes with the Africa and Arabia. With 82 mosques, including three from the 10th century, and 102 sanctuaries, it is one of the most important cities in Islam. Harar was part of the sultanat of Adal, a medieval Muslim state located in the Horn of Africa. In the 16th century, the city was surrounded by a wall comprising five doors. This wall, called Jugol , is still intact, and became the symbol of the city.
Taroudant
Flickr – Wendy Tanner
Taroudant is a fascinating and authentic Berber town in the heart of the Valley of the Souss, with the best preserved ramparts Morocco . It is often called the "Grandma of Marrakech" because it looks like Marrakech (small scale) with its walls encircling the city. The walls were built in the 16th century under the Saadians. Today, the city is a shopping town and has a souk not far from its two main squares.
Toledo
Flickr – James Gordon
A jewel often neglected, Toledo is one of the ancient capitals of the Spanish Empire. The history of Toledo dates back to the Roman era. The Roman occupation was followed by that of Wisigoths, then Muslim domination and finally the Toledo Reconquista in 1085. She was the capital of the empire Spanish until the middle of the 1500s when the royal court moved to Madrid. The city is surrounded by Tage on three sides and two medieval walls on the fourth side.
Pingyao
Flickr – Modestine The ass of the Cevennes
Pingyao is a small town Chinese famous for its well preserved fortified wall. This includes six large doors and 72 watch towers, and encircles this ancient city that has changed little over the last 300 years. In 2004, part of the south wall collapsed, but was rebuilt. However, the rest of the city's walls are still largely intact and Pingyao is considered one of the best preserved fortified cities in the world.
Óbidos
Flickr – moshimoshiii
medieval city of Óbidos is really beautiful and I invite you to read our article on this subject to discover its history and photos.
Xi’an
Wikimedia – Maros M r a z
Xi’an one of China’s oldest cities, with a story that dates back to over 3100 years. For 1000 years, the city was the capital of 13 dynasties, and a total of 73 emperors ruled here. Xi’an at the end of the Silk Road (east side) and includes the Mausolée de l’empereur Qin. The fortified wall, well preserved, surrounds the city, and was rebuilt in the 14th century at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty. It is one of the largest ramparts in the world, wide enough to ride a bike on 5 side by side.
It is Kala
Wikimedia - Hylgeriak
Itchan Kala is the inner medieval city of the city of Khiva in Uzbekistan. The old town has preserved many historical monuments and old houses, dating mainly from the 17th to the 19th century. The most spectacular features of Itchan Kala are its dried brick walls in the sun and its four doors on each side of the rectangular fortress. The city walls have been destroyed several times, but they have always been reconstructed.
Ávila
Wikimedia – Anual
Located in the west of Spain, the medieval city of Ávila is built on the flat top of a rocky hill, which rises in the middle of a real natural region. Ávila has beautifully preserved ramparts that surround the entire old city. They include nine doors and 88 towers, many of which are home to stork nests. The city walls were mainly built in the 11th and 12th centuries.
Carcassonne
Flickr – raz1940 and Charlotte
Carcassonne is one of the most perfectly preserved fortified cities in the world and is the largest medieval city in Europe . The fortification consists of two exterior walls, towers and barbacanes built over a long period of time. A part is Roman and is significantly different from the medieval enclosure with red brick layers and terracotta tiles. One of these towers housed the Catholic Inquisition in the 13th century and is still known as the "Tour of Inquisition". Scenes of the film " Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves" (1991) were shot in and around Carcassonne.
Jerusalem
Flickr – heatherintheusa
Jerusalem is a holy city for the three religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, while being the modern capital of the State of Israel and the largest city in the country. It is a fascinating place where the first century is close to the 21st century, and where the picturesque old quarters are blotting against the sparkling high towers of offices and apartments.
The fortified city of Jerusalem, which until the end of the 19th century constituted the whole city, is now called the Old Town. It is divided into four districts: Armenian, Christian, Jewish and Muslim. Jerusalem has been surrounded by walls for its defence since ancient times. In the 16th century, under the reign of the Ottoman Empire in the region, it was decided to completely rebuild the walls of the city on the vestiges of the ancient ramparts. The construction lasted from 1535 to 1538 and these walls are the walls that can still be seen today.
Dubrovnik
Flickr – archer10 (Dennis)
Dubrovnik is a fortified city on the coast of the Adriatic Sea to the extreme south of the Croatia . Known as the pearl of the Adriatic, it is one of the most important tourist destinations in the Mediterranean. The city was founded through maritime trade. In the Middle Ages, it became the only city-state in the Adriatic to compete with Venice and reached a remarkable level of development during the 15th and 16th centuries. The world-renowned ramparts surround the Old Town. Built mainly between the 12-17th centuries, they have been well preserved so far.
Do you know other medieval cities that deserve to be listed in this ranking?
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