The Château de Montségur is an old Cathar castle whose ruins still overlook the eponymous village 4,166 ft (1,207 m) above sea level in the Ariège department. The fortress was built in 1206 on the site of an old castrum at the request of Raymond de Péreille. The Château de Montségur constituted a place of residence for Cathars until the siege of 1244 and its takeover by the family of the fortress' new lord, Guy II of Lévis. During the first half of the 13th century, the castle fell victim to no less than four sieges, only one of which succeeded.