When you’re travelling through the Languedoc you’ll probably see a lot of water channels and water gates. Especially at Toulouse you can’t overlook this as the city is the starting point for a fantastic masterpiece of engineering: the Canal du Midi. The 240 kilometers long channel connecting Toulouse with the Mediterranean Sea was finished in 1681 and was very important for the economic development of the region. Today, the channel is UNESCO world heritage and that for very good reasons.
The idea behind the channel is to connect the Atlantic Ocean with the Mediterranean Sea making the ship route around the Iberian peninsula superfluous. Already the Romans had dreamed of this connection, but only Le Roi Soleil, Louis XIV dared to order its creation. Toulouse is connected to the Atlantic Ocean by the river Garonne that passes via Bordeaux to the sea. In the other direction to the Mediterranean coast a channel was needed that passes Carcassonne, Béziers and ends at Sète.
On its way you can see a large amount of aqueducts, water gates and tunnels all necessary because of 200 meters difference in height that need to be managed. Engineer Pierre-Paul Riquet also decided to plant trees all along the channel which stabilized the ground, reduced the evaporation of water and created shadow for the workers and horses that had to pull the ships in the beginning. Today the Canal du Midi is mostly used for touristic reasons; you can rent a boat and take the tour or ride your bike underneath the trees of the channel. But it also gives a very special atmosphere to the city of Toulouse; the channel still shapes the city today.
Canal du Midi
Toulouse / Carcassonne
France
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