Aigues-Mortes (Google Map)  is a walled city in the Camargue region in the south of France in the Department of Gard. The awful sounding name comes from the marshes that surrounded it at the time.  The city is quite old, dating back before the Crusades.  It was made into a port on the Mediteranean Sea--the first such port in what was to become France-- by King Louis IX in 1240 AD.  And Saint Louis twice left for Crusades from Aigue Morte. Indeed, two of the interesting things about the city are its lighthouse tower which was used in those days, and a church, Notre Dame des Sablons,  (Our Lady of the Sands) still in use that also was used by the Crusaders.

 

In spite of its gruesome name, this town is a very popular tourist stop.  We first saw it driving east from Carcassone to Arles.  The landscape was very flat and grassy.  The Camargue is noted for a landscape that includes black bulls, white horses and pink flamingoes and we saw these on our drive. At one point we looked over on our right and saw in the distance the white walls of a city gleaming in the sunshine that we had just passed.  When we looked at a map we saw that it must be Aigue Morte.  So the next time we were in the area we decided to stop and see what it was like inside the walls.  You can see these photos of what we saw, including the church and the lighthouse. (Click to enlarge)  And you can read our reactions in Letters home.

 

 

Tourist information, Map

Intrepid Traveler