Gambetta Square

The Square Gambetta

Facing the Museum of Fine Arts, the Carcassonne audio-guided tour invites you to pause at the Square Gambetta, a peaceful place in the Bastide Saint-Louis. This garden with an eventful history is today a relaxation space appreciated by the people of Carcassonne.

A garden with an eventful history

Laid out in 1861 under the name of Place du Charbon, then Place Sainte-Cecile, it took the name Gambetta in 1883, in tribute to this statesman of the Third Republic. In 1944, the square was entirely razed by order of the German occupier, who wanted to clear this part of the town to better watch over it: waterfall, bandstand and basins were destroyed in a single day. Only the plane trees were spared. This dark page is recalled here with gravity.

What there is to see

From the end of the war, the town sought to erase the traces of that period: in 1946, the square was rebuilt as a French formal garden, then redeveloped in 2015 to become the lively place of today. At its end stands the Monument to the Aude Resistance, before which one pauses with respect, in memory of those who resisted. Basins, shaded paths and benches now invite strolling.

Practical information

The Square Gambetta is in the Bastide Saint-Louis, facing the Museum of Fine Arts, near the Pont-Neuf. It is a public garden freely accessible, suitable for a shaded break. The Monument to the Aude Resistance, at its end, is a place of memory to be approached with contemplation.

Why was the square destroyed in 1944 ?

It was razed by order of the German occupier, who wanted to clear this part of the town to better watch over it; only the plane trees were spared.

What is at the end of the square ?

There stands the Monument to the Aude Resistance, a place of memory dedicated to those who resisted.