From the top of a rocky outcrop, the castle of Foix in the Ariège department dominates the medieval town at the crossroads between the Ariège and Agret rivers. At a strategic position, the fortress allowed protecting the counts behind its high walls and controlling the Haute-Ariège valley by monitoring the low country. The castle was an emblem of the power of a highly independent county strongly committed to the defense of the Cathar cause. The cradle of the counts of Foix, it had the reputation of being impregnable and has never folded under enemy attacks.