The medieval castle

When we arrived in 1976, with our 3 young children, this small hamlet on the heights of Digne no longer had any permanent inhabitants. The house was in ruins, without electricity, without water, without heating... The remains of an old stone tower offered an extraordinary playground for the children, but we were far from suspecting that, buried in the earth, the foundations of a medieval castle!

In order to provide more living space, another fortified building, the stately home, was built soon after. The walls, at the base, were 1.20m thick and the four corners, curiously, were rounded probably for lack of beautiful stones. A local pink plaster coating on the interior facing was found. Cut stones, found on the spot, suggest that a vaulted door existed due south. Remains of floor, supported by wooden rafters were found as well as a wall cupboard, in plaster.

In 1230, the castle belonged to Raymond-Béranger V, Count of Provence and in 1246, Charles 1st, brother of Saint Louis King of France, became Count of Provence. He will have the round tower built there, the base of which can still be seen, to assert his authority. This also makes it possible to monitor the Bléone valley and the passage to Italy.