Our Blog - Tourtour, France

The village itself dates from the 12th century. Three different ramparts are still visible: the oldest protects the old medieval castle and the first houses to be built, the second mostly seen on Rue des Caves (with 14th and 17th century doors, and the third (also 17th century) which encloses the communal castle and the chapel of Sainte Trinite. The two castles, the doors, the maze of streets and squares have changed little since the Middle Ages.

The village is dominated by the 11th century Romanesque church of St Denis, and its location gives some amazing views of the countryside around the village. Both the inside and the outside are rather dull ... but there are a few interesting things including a nice stained glass window and 16th century busts of Saint-Stephen and Saint-Nicolas.

The town has two nicknames: village in the sky (because of the views) and the village of fountains. There is a natural spring that feeds 8 fountains in the village. I didn't get pictures of all of them, but here is a sampling of them. You an see that they are all different.

Place des Ormeaux is the main square and is very typical of old villages. Along the south side, café-restaurant tables surround a pair of tall olive trees. These olive trees replaced a pair of enormous elms planted in 1638 when Anne of Austria stopped here on her pilgrimage to Cotignac. The square is named after those now-gone elm trees (ormeaux). In the center is another of the towns fountains.

The storybook 16th-century chateau, once called the Chateau du Raphélis, has four round towers and sits at the southeast end of the village. The chateau facade was "restored" in 2001, covering the exposed-stone walls with a colored cement stucco. I'm not sure if I would call it an improvement :-)

There's another Medieval chateau, at the north end of the village, called the Chateau Vieux, or "Old Chateau". It has a pair of round towers and, in my opinion, is much prettier than the new chateau.

On the rue de le Lavoir along the north edge of the village is a very nice lavoir or wash house, fed by a small stream that flows along the edge of the road. The source of the water is a spring by the Chapel Saint-Rosaire about a km northeast of the village. The water is so fresh, its temperature varies no more than three degrees between summer and winter.