Fleur Pellerin, Minister of Culture and Communication, on the proposal of the National Council of Cities and Countries of Art and History, decides to award the label “City of Art and History” to the city of Carcassonne (Aude) and the label “Country of Art and History”in the Pays de Senlis (Oise) in Ermenonville and in the Pays de Saint-Jean-de-Luz and Ciboure (Pyrénées Atlantiques).

The award of the «Ville or Pays d'art et d'histoire» is part of the action of the Ministry of Culture and Communication for the development of Arts and Cultural Education. It embodies the implementation of a policy of valuing heritage and raising awareness of architecture. It thus offers residents and young people reading keys for a better understanding of their living environment, as well as the rich sarchitectural, heritage and environmental elements that make it up.

The city of Carcassonne, Concerned to strengthen the links between its three entities that are the upper city - Medieval city -, the lower city - bastide Saint-Louis - and the more recent neighborhoods of the suburbs, engages in a cultural project of architectural and heritage knowledge and mediation with all audiences.

The Country of Senlis in Ermenonville, which brings together the municipalities of Senlis, Mont l'Evêque, Fontaine-Chaalis and Ermenonville, wishes to promote the diversity of its heritage and contemporary creation to new audiences. Particular attention will be paid to networking with the cultural actors of the territory, as well as the establishment of a partnership with the City of Art and History of Chantilly.

The Pays de Saint-Jean-de-Luz and Ciboure has the ambition to amplify the actions carried out by the two municipalities in terms of architectural and heritage mediation in order to combine the quality of the living environment for its inhabitants and the strengthening of the attractiveness of its contemporary territory for visitors. The cultural project will focus on taking into account a transversal scientific approach.

The National Council, which met on 28 May 2015, invited the two new Labeled Countries to expand their actions across the agglomeration of which they are part. He also announced the renewal of the conventions of the Cities of Art and History of Laval (Mayenne) and Cambrai (North) and the amendment to the convention of the Country of Art and History of Lens-Liévin (Pas-de-Calais).

The network of Cities and Countries of Art and History, whose 30th anniversary is being celebrated this yeare anniversary, now counts 116 Cities and 68 Countries.