The siege of Carcassone lasted for 5 years and famine was taking its toll. Behind the walls Dame Carcass kept watch alone; she set up straw effigies; she fired off crossbows at the besieging army to give the impression that many defenders remained. In the city, there remained just one small pig and one measure of wheat to feed the population. So Dame Carcass force-fed her pig with the rest of the wheat and hurled it over the walls. The pig burst open on hitting the ground and from its torn belly poured a veritable flood of good grain. Charlemagne immediately abandoned the pointless siege: there was clearly so much grain in Carcassonne that they even fed their pigs on it!
Legend of Carcassonne
