Montaillou

This book by Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie examines the lives and beliefs of the population of Montaillou, a small village in the Pyrenees, at the beginning of the fourteenth century.

It is largely based on the Fournier Register, a set of records from the Inquisition that investigated and attempted to suppress the spread of Catharism in the Ariège region.

The work provides a detailed picture of peasant society, including their social structures, sexual practices, religious beliefs, and daily lives.

It is a landmark in the genre of microhistory and offers insights into the mentalité of the villagers, their attitudes towards time, space, magic, morality, death, and childhood.