The catholic church had many enemies in medieval Europe, but one of the greatest challenges to its power and authority came not from over-mighty kings, but from heretics. One particular group, a sect of dualists who rejected the old testament, the incarnation of Christ, and the trinity, presented a very real threat to Catholic orthodoxy – the Cathars.

These Cathars, or ‘Good Christians’ as they called themselves, spread rapidly throughout the south of France in the 12th Century, quickly becoming an important part of the social fabric of the Languedoc. When the Papacy, led by Pope Innocent III, was finally roused to action, it unleashed a tidal wave of persecution and violence which permanently scarred this region of France, leading to the destruction of vast numbers of villages, towns and castles, and the deaths of thousands upon thousands of Cathar faithful.

The tale of the Cathars is a tragic one, spanning decades of warfare, intrigue and bloodshed. Today we will attempt to answer the question: who were the Cathars?

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Music:
Blank Light – Adi Goldstein
Europa – Tecnosine
Who Listens to Trees Anyway – Ben McElroy
Echoes – Scott Buckley
Way, Way Down There – John Hayes
Uprising – Scott Buckley

Sources:

“The Cathars.” In Heresy and Authority in Medieval Europe, edited by Edward Peters, 98-114. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1980.

Hill, Derek. Inquisition in the Fourteenth Century: The Manuals of Bernard Gui and Nicholas Eymerich. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1967.

Martin, Sean. A Short History of the Cathars. London: Pocket Essentials, 2012.

Peter of Les Vaux-de-Cernay. The History of the Albigensian Crusade: Peter of Les Vaux-de-Cernay’s Historia Albigensis. Translated by W. A. Sibly and M. D. Sibly. Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 1998.

Lambert, Malcolm. Medieval Heresy: Popular Movements from the Gregorian Reform to the Reformation. 3rd ed. Oxford: Blackwell, 2002.

Johnston, William, ed. Encyclopedia of Monasticism. 2 vols. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2000.

O’Shea, Andrew Philip. The Lost Teachings of the Cathars: Their Beliefs and Practices. Oxford: Mandrake, 2006.

All materials are used under fair use for education and commentary.

0:00 – Intro
2:18 – Origins
6:19 – Etymology
7:28 – Cathar Belief
14:18 – Organisation
19:55 – Social Life and Society
22:44 – Persecution
28:02 – The Albigensian Crusade
34:25 – The End of the Cathars
32:57 – Decline and Fall

33 Comments

  1. So the Cathars were basically a form of Gnosticism? Similar to Valentinian or Sethian Gnostics?
    Its fascinating to me that the gnostic heresy kept popping up in different guises for over a thousand yrs. I think it reveals how intuitive it was for ppl to recognize there is a huge and obvious fissure between the God of the Jews/ Old Testament vs Jesus/Christ; that they were nothing alike, and that its natural for moral people to be repulsed by the behavior and speech of YHWH.

  2. I’m surprised how the could spread so quickly. No marriage, no sex.. that would mean no children.
    Even today people are more into pleasure than anything, yet these guys managed to sign up so many to deprivation.

  3. A group that threatens the wealth and power of the Catholic church is brutally crushed. Why am I not surprised? All that really mattered to the church was greed.

  4. Albi, the old parts are well worth visiting as are the museums of Toulouse Lautrec and Laperouse. The Chateau de Montsegur, a very awesome place which I climbed to on a beautiful clear sunny day to be rewarded with a fabulous view of the southern Pyrenees. Despite the fine day, unsought, I felt a great sense of sadness at Montsegur. Well worth a visit and the steep climb, go, enjoy, profit.

  5. I encountered the Cathars whilst studying medieval technology and how new technology conflicted with the church. Southern France was the center of religious conflict. Excellent video. 🎉🎉🎉

  6. I took many medieval and late antiquity courses while earning my history degree. I have to say, this is the best infotainment I’ve seen on YouTube. Incredibly accurate and current with modern scholarship. Well done.

  7. Did not Christ Jesus and the Apostles foretell that the Church would be corrupted? That even some who had positions of responsibility in the congregations would fall prey to selfish desires can be seen in the Apostle Paul's farewell address in the city of Miletus, to which he had summoned the elders from the congregation in Ephesus, "…I know that after my going away oppressive wolves will enter in among you and will not treat the flock with tenderness, and from among you yourselves men will rise and speak twisted things to draw away the disciples after themselves." Acts 20:17,29,30
    The illustration Jesus gave of the weeds that would be allowed to grow amongst the wheat until harvest time, when both could be clearly identified, also shows that counterfeit Christians would come up among the true disciples of Christ. Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
    With our eternal salvation at stake, we might wonder how can we identify those who practice true Christianity and have God's approval from false Christians who will soon be destroyed?
    With Christ stating that true Christians would be identified by the "love" they would have amongst themselves, would they not display a love that transcended any national or racial boundaries, even in times of war. John 13:34,35
    Besides foretelling the wars, diseases, earthquakes, and food shortages that we are currently experiencing on a grand scale, did Jesus not foretell that there would be a great preaching work in the last days, with it's theme being the Good News of God's Kingdom? Matthew 24:14 Matthew 28:19,20
    With the honoring of his Father's name being the dearest thing to Jesus's heart, and the very first thing he told his followers to pray for in Lord's Prayer, would we not expect it to be honored and promoted by true Christians? Matthew 6:9, John 17:6, Acts 15:14

  8. Languedoc = langue d'oc = language of birds. Supposedly the language of birds was the way the alchemists communicated secretly with each other. Before the languedoc i think the area was called Septimania.

  9. Your videos are such amazing quality from the writing to presentation. Absolutely love them. One small quibble I have, to make watching them more enjoyable – I wish you’d have the art you show take up the entire screen. I love seeing medieval art and the visuals always help put things into context. But the images are scaled down so tiny! Literally my only issue.

  10. Shame that such violence and genocide still persists to this day, all in the name of religion.

    Once any religion becomes institutionalized, symbolism takes the place of morality.

  11. And people still say the crusades and inquisitions were justified and awesome to this day. Its crazy how people justify mass killing and injustice over different beliefs.

  12. The minute you did the Monty Python version of Inquisition history you proved you know nothing. Modern research has shown how limited and specific the Holy Inquisition was. They discovered all the Inquisition records. Suggesting it was somehow comparable to 20th century history is beyond absurd.

  13. I LOVE THE HISTORIES
    not just for the histories, but man, your aesthetics and the quality of the video convey the significance of the topics in such a way that one feels the breath of ages very clearly.

  14. To be clear the Catholic Church was doing what Jesus would do. Jesus would mass slaughter, destroy, kill and being an extremist obliterating all who opposed his power as the Christ. So the Vicar of Christ, being the Vicar who took over the mantle of Christ, had to clearly follow the same path.

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