| Tour 3 : The paths of
History : Castles, Chapels, Shrines |
Leave Aix by the D17 in the direction
of Le Tholonet, Beaurecueil, St-Antonin, the Sainte-Victoire mountain,
the landscapes of Cézanne. At Puyloubier, take the D12 towards
Trets. Cross the RN 7.
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Puyloubier
Leave Aix by the D17 in the direction of Le Tholonet,
Beaurecueil, St-Antonin, the Sainte-Victoire mountain,
the landscapes of Cézanne.
In the Middle Ages the estate was partly owned
by the Abbey of St Victor.
• St-Pons Parish Church: Romanesque style,
completed in 1870.
• Chapel of St-Pancrace: child martyr and patron
saint of children. Procession with «piade» ritual
(blessing of the harvest)
• St-Ser Hermitage: site occupied by the hermit
Ser who was martyred by the soldiers of Euric
and had his ears cut off (485).
• The chapel was rebuilt and blessed in 2001.
• Pilgrimage on Pentecost Monday.
• Chapel of St-Roch, 14th century, with a rare
7th-century Merovingian altar.
• Church of Ste-Marie, 9th century, currently
being restored.
Appeared on a postage stamp in 2002.
The town was awarded the national «Rubans du
Patrimoine» prize in 2003.
Take the D12 in the direction of Trets. Cross the N7.
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Trets
Trets was already inhabited in prehistoric times
on Mont-Olympe. The city was founded by
a Greek colony and invaded by the Saracens.
Trets began its development in the Middle Ages,
and was ruled by a succession of lords, from
the Viscounts of Marseille to Thomassin de
Peynier. The town is mediaeval in character,
with old houses, narrow winding streets and
vaulted arches.
Of special note:
• The feudal castle with its ramparts and its two
square gate-towers.
• Church of Notre-Dame de Nazareth, a former
priory in the Provençal Romanesque style, with
gothic chapels.
• Chapel of St-Jean du Puy, an old hermitage
isolated on a rocky peak at a height of 658 m,
with a Romanesque apse and Gallo-Roman
pillars.
Follow the N7 towards Châteauneuf-le-Rouge.
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Châteauneuf-le-Rouge
The XVI - XVIIth century château is a compromise
between the estate’s farming industry and the
pomp intrinsic to every aristocratic house-hold.
Three main entrances lead out to a paved inner
courtyard. The northern entrance leads under
an archway into a passage where a spring
flows constantly into a stone trough. Through
the «state» courtyard, we arrive at the carriage
gateway which opens up onto the park adorned
with a maze made from box trees over a hundred
years old, and rows of plane trees which are
typical of any noble Provençal residence.
Take the N7 back towards Aix, then the N96 towards La
Barque, and then Fuveau via the A52.
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Fuveau
• Chapel of St-Michel, renovated in the 16th
century, with Romanesque gate and dovecote.
• Chapel of St-Roch, built in 1729 in
thanksgiving for protection against the plague
of 1720.
• Chapel of St-Jean de Melissanne.
• Church of St-Michel, former chapel of the
lord’s residence which it adjoins. It was rebuilt
in 1853.
• The Bassac Gate in the mediaeval ramparts
was the way in to the fortified village. The
present construction dates from the 18th
century.
• Oil mill, open on Heritage Days.
• Old Washhouse, built in 1873.
Follow the road to Aix via La Barque, and then continue
on the D6 towards Gardanne, Meyreuil.
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Meyreuil
On the RN7, level with the Clairefontaine service
station, a path leads to the magnificent chapel
of St-Marc-de-l’Arc (11th century). It replaces
the ruins of a Roman temple dedicated to Mars.
In 1444, the chapel was enlarged by Lord André
De Burle and became a place of pilgrimage on
the Sunday following 25 April. In the village
the church of Saint-Marc dates from 1689. The
village has several shrines including the Sainte-Barbe shrine, situated at the mine’s pithead and
the Saint-Marc shrine, in the Coteau Rouge
area.
Return to Aix by the D58H, and follow «Pont des Trois
Sautets». |
See:
All tours - Tour 1 - Tour 2 - Tour 3 - Tour 4
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