Château des Baux-de-Provence

Château des Baux-de-Provence

A castle of living rock

In the sun-baked Alpilles hills of Provence, in the south of France, a great spur of white limestone rises above the surrounding plain — and along its top sprawl the dramatic ruins of the Château des Baux-de-Provence. Here it is hard to tell where the rock ends and the castle begins, for much of the fortress was carved directly into the stone, with rooms, stairways and passages cut from the living rock alongside built walls and towers. The whole rugged plateau, with its ruins and its perched village, is one of the most striking sights in Provence.

The proud lords of Baux

In the Middle Ages, Les Baux was the stronghold of the lords of Baux, one of the proudest and most powerful noble families in Provence. They boasted a colourful legend that they were descended from one of the Three Wise Men of the Christmas story, and they took a star as their emblem. From their rocky fortress they ruled over many surrounding lands and were famous — and often feared — for their fierce independence and their constant wars.

The castle grew over the centuries into a great complex of halls, towers, a keep and a chapel, all clinging to and carved into the rock, with the village of Les Baux huddled below the walls.

Dismantled on the king's orders

The independent spirit of Les Baux eventually brought about its downfall. In the 1600s, the powerful chief minister of France, Cardinal Richelieu, was determined to break the power of rebellious nobles and their strongholds. The people of Les Baux had taken part in revolts, and so, in 1632, Richelieu ordered the castle to be dismantled — its walls and towers pulled down so it could never again be used against the crown.

The proud fortress was reduced to the ruins we see today, and the town was made to pay for its own castle's destruction.

A romantic ruin

Though ruined, Les Baux lost none of its drama. Its broken walls, carved chambers and the great rock itself, with sheer drops to the plain below, make it a place of wild beauty. Visitors can see siege engines reconstructed on the plateau, climb among the ruins, and gaze out over the Provençal landscape of olive groves, vineyards and the strange white quarries nearby.

The village below, with its narrow streets and old houses, is listed among the "most beautiful villages of France" and draws many visitors, while the old quarries nearby now host spectacular light shows projected onto their stone walls.

Visiting today

Visitors can wander the vast ruined castle, exploring rooms carved from the rock, climbing to dizzying viewpoints, and seeing reconstructed medieval war machines. From the heights, the view stretches across the Alpilles and the Provençal plain. Rugged, dramatic and steeped in the story of its proud and rebellious lords, the Château des Baux-de-Provence is one of the most memorable castle ruins in the south of France.