Les Baux-de-Provence FRANCE 🇫🇷 A Guided Walk 🤩 Village and Castle [4k]

Bonjour, I’m Pierre from French Moments and  in this video, I’ll take you for a walk in the village of Les Baux-de-Provence. We’ll also  explore the castle at the top of the village. If you enjoyed this video,  please hit the like button! It really supports the channel and helps  us bring more amazing content to you. Also, if you haven't already, click on  the subscribe button and turn on the notification bell so you never  miss out on our latest videos. Let's begin our tour of Les Baux-de-Prove

nce  from the north entrance of the village. Here we are on the Esplanade Charles  de Gaulle, which leads to the main entrance of the village from the car parks. The rampart against which the buildings were constructed was breached in the second  half of the 19th century to allow for the opening of the current town entrance. This entrance is known as the Porte Mage. On the right is the Maison du Roy. Until the French Revolution, the town of Les Baux-de-Provence was the  capital of a royal and fe

udal jurisdiction. The seat was long situated in this  building, constructed in 1499. Justice was notably administered  here in the name of the sovereign. Today, the Maison du Roy  houses the Tourist Office. We walk along the Rue Porte Mage. Let's turn right into this lane to arrive at the Place Louis Jou. Here is the view over the valley of the Vallon de la Fontaine. And in front of us is the old guardhouse from the 17th century. Let's backtrack to the main street. The guardhouse now contains t

he Santons Museum. There, you can admire Neapolitan figurines from the 17th and 18th centuries,  church santons from the 19th, and a traditional Provençal nativity scene. We walk along the Grand-Rue Frédéric Mistral, which is lined with many shops for tourists. Here is the Renaissance-style Hôtel Jean de Brion. This private mansion was completely restored by  Louis Jou, a painter, engraver, and typographer of Spanish origin who decided to settle here in 1939. After the death of Louis Jou, the m

ansion houses the Louis Jou Foundation. In July 2021, the foundation set up on the ground floor, “l’Atelier du Livre,”  renowned for the quality of its manuscript, archive, and precious book restorations. On the first floor is Louis Jou's library, comprising 5000 volumes from  the 16th to the 19th centuries, including engravings by Dürer and Goya. You see the flags on the left announcing the town hall building. It is also the Hôtel de Manville, the most beautiful Renaissance private  mansion in

Les Baux-de-Provence. The residence was built in 1571 by the  Manvilles, a wealthy Protestant family. Let's go inside to admire the old inner  courtyard with Renaissance porticos. Alright, let's continue the tour. In front of us are the ruins of a significant residence from 1571: the “Logis  de Brisson-Peyre," of which only the remnants of a monumental Renaissance window remain. This window bears the Calvinist inscription: "Post Tenebras Lux," meaning  "after the darkness, light." Now, let's tak

e a right to the Rue des Fours. The building on the left is the Hôtel de Porcelet. It's a 16th-century residence with an  original façade and elegant mullioned windows. It houses the Yves Brayer Museum, where paintings  by the figurative artist dedicated to Spain, Italy, and Morocco are displayed. We've now arrived at the church square, Place Saint-Vincent Here is the 17th-century Chapel of the White Penitents. And there is a magnificent view over the valley. In front of us, the Saint-Vincent  c

hurch dates back to the 12th century. If you can visit the interior, you'll see that  the church is partly carved into the rock. Let's go back to the Rue des Fours. But instead of returning to the Grand-Rue, let's go down the Rue de la Calade on the left. It's getting late in the afternoon, and there are fewer visitors, especially on this picturesque  street, which isn't lined with souvenir shops. The street leads to the fortified  gate of "Porte Eyguières" and to the Place Louis Jou, where we w

ere earlier. As for us, we'll return to the Grand-Rue by taking the Rue de la Lauze on the right. It's a small passageway that tourists heading to the castle from the lower part of the village  don't know well because it's a bit out of the way. Here we are again in front of the town hall. And the Renaissance windows of Post Tenebras Lux. Let's take a left onto the Rue des Fours  and then right onto the Rue du Château. To satisfy our curiosity, let's  follow this street for a few metres. It's the

Rue de l’Orme, a very  picturesque narrow street. Let's continue on the Rue du Trancat  to reach the entrance of the castle. As you can see, the street has been carved into  the rock. There, we're not far from the castle. This is the old building that houses  the castle’s bookshop and shop. On the left is the Saint-Blaise Chapel, an old  Romanesque chapel raised by the corporation of weavers and wool carders in the 12th century. Now, I'll take you to visit the castle of Les Baux. Once past the

ticket office, we begin our visit with the Gardens of Quiqueron. This is a new garden, nestled within the walls of the village's ancient arena and at the foot of  the ruins of the 16th-century charity hospital. The garden draws inspiration from medieval  garden principles, which are full of symbols and partitioned into different spaces,  each offering a unique atmosphere. It features plants and shrubs  typical of the Provençal garrigue: thyme, rosemary, and orchard fruits. Reconstructions of med

ieval siege engines are displayed on the site. Here is the trebuchet. On certain days, these machines perform  shooting demonstrations with real projectiles. Here is the battering ram or “bélier” in French. Let's look at the view over  the Vallon d'Entreconque. The location of the Baux plateau, naturally perched and secluded, has  always provided its inhabitants with a dual advantage: first, the ability to observe the  surroundings and second, to protect themselves. This likely explains why it h

as been  occupied since the Ancient Times and almost continuously to the present day. The earliest known texts from the 10th century speak of "Balcium  Castrum" or the castle of Balcio. They mention a lord, Pons the Young,  whose descendants adopted the name of Les Baux as their surname. As one can easily see today, the 13th-century castle takes advantage  of the natural rock formation and supports the other buildings of the castle. The extraordinary site of Les Baux-de-Provence is situated on a

spur 700 meters long and 200  metres wide, bordered by two steep ravines. The word ‘baux’ comes from the  Provençal ‘bàus’, meaning a steep rock. The village gave its name to bauxite, an aluminium  mineral first discovered and mined here in 1822. Its extraction ceased in 1990. Let's go up to the Sarrasine Tower via the stairs. On one side, a view of the village of Les Baux, and on the other, the beautiful Vallon d’Entreconque and the Alpilles. On the horizon, you can even see  the Montagne Sain

te-Victoire, the famous mountain near Aix-en-Provence. Let's climb a few more steps to reach the top of the Sarrasine Tower. Look at the magnificent view. The site was governed by a family the poet  Mistral called “a race of eagles, never vassals”. The lords of Les Baux claimed  descent from the Magi Balthasar. From the 11th century, they were among the most  powerful feudal lords in the south of France. From 1145 to 1162, they waged war  against the House of Barcelona, disputing its rights over

Provence. However, their efforts were in vain, as they had to submit after being besieged in their fiefdom. The lords of Les Baux became, for some, princes of Orange, viscounts of Marseille, and even  counts of Avellino and dukes of Andria in Italy, having followed the expedition of the  princes of Anjou to Southern Italy. Here are the remains of the castle chapel. Stories tell of 'courts of love' in Les Baux, with troubadours serenading the county’s  most beautiful women with their poetry. We

are now inside the keep. And we're going to head towards the staircase that leads to the top. So, the panel indicates that caution is needed because access to the keep is difficult. Indeed, even in dry weather, I've found the stones to be very slippery. Well, I’m going to attempt the climb, camera in hand. I advise against going up if you suffer from vertigo. The steps are very steep. Now, we're walking along the cliffside! Both romantics and visitors are drawn by accounts of the fierce actions

of the lords of  Les Baux, especially the 15th-century Raymond of Turenne, who acted like an outlaw. This lord of the place was related to two Popes of Avignon. He was nicknamed “le Fléau de Provence” or the Scourge of Provence. Raymond de Turenne's favourite pastime was to force prisoners to leap into the void  from the top of the castle of Les Baux. Their hesitations and anguish amused him greatly. Many were undoubtedly relieved by his death in 1413 at the age of 61. No one knows where or how

he died. And it's also unknown where he was buried. In 1481, the barony of Les Baux and Provence was annexed to the kingdom of France. The barony revolted in 1483, and then King Louis XI of France ordered  the fortress to be dismantled. And here we are at the top of the keep,  from where we dominate the entire region. It's one of the most beautiful  panoramas in Provence. Alright, it's time to descend. We still have one more castle tower to climb: the Paravelle Tower. From 1528, the Constable An

ne de Montmorency, who held Les Baux, undertook  significant restorations, and the village again experienced a prosperous period. However, Les Baux became a Protestant stronghold under the family of Mainville, who  administered the barony for the crown of France. In 1631, the fortress was again  in the hands of the rebels. The royal decision to abolish the  Parliament of Provence the previous year provoked a revolt in Aix-en-Provence. Some rebels fled and took refuge in Les Baux. The town was be

sieged by the  troops of Richelieu in 1632. Following these battles, the fortress  was again dismantled, but this time, the castle did not rise from its ruins. Not only did the inhabitants see their fief reduced to ruins, but they also had  to pay a heavy fine and demolition costs. In 1642, the lordship of Les Baux was given by  Louis XIII to Hercule Grimaldi as a thank-you for his policy favouring the crown of France. He passed on the title of Marquis des Baux to his descendants, of whom Prince

Albert  of Monaco is the current holder. This explains why there is a Place  Prince Rainier III on the site of the Post Tenebras Lux that we saw earlier. Now it's time for the Paravelle Tower. It's not as tall as the other towers, but its  stairs are even steeper and more slippery. There's a beautiful view of  the village and, just below, the parade ground for medieval demonstrations  and the archery and crossbow shooting area. Here's a superb overview of the castle. And there, the Val d’Enfer,

the valley of hell. Alright, let's go down, being careful not to slip. The next stop on our tour is where the medieval siege engines are located. We pass under the Paravelle Tower. Here is the archery and crossbow shooting area. And here we are on the terrace of the medieval siege engines. With a beautiful overview of the castle. The Castle of Les Baux-de-Provence  is the only site in the South of France with functioning siege machines. These faithful reconstructions of full-size machines fire

real projectiles, allowing us  to relive the atmosphere of a medieval siege. We are almost at the end  of our visit to the castle. But before heading back to the exit, we're going  to discover the cave dwellings on the right. These houses bear witness to the ingenuity  of the inhabitants of Les Baux, who used the stone to make their homes more functional. You can take the time to look for clues like shelves moulded into the wall, fireplaces  fitted into the thickness of the rock, or handles for

hanging equipment and drying ham. The inhabitants had a superb view of the village. The exit is at the end of the garden. We're walking along the site of the old Quiqueran Hospital, built in the 16th  century to house the poor and the sick. It was closed in 1787 and  transferred to the Maussane Hospital, which still houses its archives today. Here we are at the end of our visit to the castle. Let's continue our exploration of Les  Baux-de-Provence with a visit to the castle esplanade, which is w

ell worth the detour. I visited in the late afternoon, and as I reach the esplanade, the sun is setting on the horizon. We're going to have some superb views of the site and its surroundings. See this sloping paved area? It's an impluvium, used to collect  rainwater to supply the village. Let's continue to the next stage  of our discovery of the esplanade. Here is the old windmill, dating back to 1652. Three windmills operated on  the prow of the rocky spur. Now, let's head towards the  front of

the rocky spur. The sunset is magnificent to the naked eye, but  the camera doesn't capture its beauty as it is! Here is the view towards the west. We can see the region of Arles and the Camargue. In the distance, the Plain of Crau, the Étang de  Berre, and the mountains in front of Marseille. Here is the Charloun-Rieu monument in  memory of the Provençal language poet. In front of us stand the ruins of the castle. Let's walk towards the edge of the cliff on the right to admire the  Alpilles mo

untain range better. We have a fantastic view of the Plain of Les Baux, also called the Vallon d’Entreconque, a  real garden with olive groves and vineyards. Ok, let's head back to the village, passing  once again in front of the castle entrance. In front of us stands the  Hôtel de la Tour de Brau. This private mansion is the former Hôtel de  Glandevès, dating from the late 14th century. By donation from King René in the  15th century, it became the property of the powerful de la Tour de Brau fa

mily. Inside are two models showing the state of the castle of Les Baux de Provence in the  13th century and during the Renaissance. As you've understood, strolling through  the streets of Les Baux constitutes a real delight, at least when crowds and  tourist shops do not overrun them. Les Baux is a leading tourist destination in France, renowned for contributing to the romantic allure of Provence. The village is visited annually by 1.5 million tourists. This is considerable, especially knowing

that the commune has just under 300 inhabitants, with only 22 permanent residents in the old perched village. Moreover, in the Middle Ages,  it had up to 6,000 inhabitants, making it one of the largest towns in the region. Les Baux-de-Provence has been awarded the title of "Most Beautiful Village of France." Les Plus Beaux Villages de France is a French association and a certification  mark established in 1982 that encompasses a network of more than 176 villages. Les Baux-de-Provence is the only

village in the Bouches-du-Rhône département  enjoying the prestigious title. Provence boasts 22 villages from the network,  including Lourmarin, Roussillon, and Gordes. If you're watching this on YouTube and you've  been to Les Baux-de-Provence and the Alpilles, I'd love to hear about your visit! Drop a comment below and tell us what you loved about it. And here we are at the end of our discovery tour. Thank you for watching this video. It was a real pleasure to bring you along on my discovery

walk in the village  and castle of Les Baux-de-Provence. I’ll see you soon for other adventures. A bientôt!