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Vist of the village

Provence -Les Baux -Visit of the village

According to he last population count Les Baux has about 500 villagers. I had more the impression that the majority leaves the rock after their work and return to their home villages like Maussane, Paradou or Saint-Remy. The visit of Les Baux is to do on foot. You can park at the entry. Like in the days of Prosper Merimee there are a lot of “cafes with breathtaking “look-through” into the valley and BREATHTAKING BAD FOOD! In Main Street there are hidden cellars carved in soft stone once used by the peasants as storage space. What is not hidden are the numerous souvenir shops and “art galleries” with the same useless objects that you can find in any tourist centre in the world!
But if you are a sport, a very competent Office du Tourisme provides maps of the region for hikers.
It is sad to say, especially for the admirers of Les Baux, that the summer fuss only shows partly the skeleton of a city where real life disappeared centuries ago. Them, who want to see the truth, just walk through the streets of Les Baux or climb the dubious stairs to the chateau on a night when the mistral wind howls around the corners and it is full moon. I did an expedition like that and at my return the hotel hostess looked me right in the eyes and said I was “crazy” to do a thing like that. Didn’t I know that there was something mysterious about the chateau at night?
In this rocky village, a few monuments deserve our attention.  A museum "des Santons" (painted terra cotta figurines used to decorate Christmas cribs) can attract some attention. Nice view on the "Val d'Enfer" from the porte d'Eyguieres. Look now for the rue de la Lause to be confronted with the magnificent Hotel de Manville (1571), where the actual city Hall and museum are located.

The Hotel de Porcelets was created in 1569 called today "fondation Yves-Brayer" (see later what he did to the Chapelle des Penitents Blancs ), and is located just before we meet the churches Saint-Vincent and Chapelle des Penitents Blancs. The eglise Saint-Vincent serves as decorum for the famous Christmas midnight mass of the shepherds. At the other side of the small square Saint-Vincent, looking more as an enormous balcony, the 17th century floats at the border of the precipice. The interior of the Chapelle was spoiled and wasted by the popular regional painter Yves-Brayer, who made the habit to represent Provence or to let wrappers grow in the trees. But a lot of people like his style, chacun son gout!
Don't forget to get lost in some of the small streets that still have charm but are invaded by too many shops and boutiques that spoil the pleasure of loitering.
 The rue du Trencat climbs to the Manoir de la Tour de Brau from the 14th and 15th century. Here you have to pay a fee in the summer months but for the same money we can visit the small but nice Musee Archeologioque et Lapidaire. 
The chateau is almost totally ruined but its remains are still very evocative of the fierce battles during the middle ages. Let’s not forget that this place was the knot and the heart of the defensive system of the comtes de Provence to prevent Sarrasin raids. But in 1426, Alix des Baux, last of the name, dies, and soon after, Louis XI razes the chateau and in 1635 the domain is offered to the Grimaldi.

 Bibliography

"La Provence devient francaise", by Roger Duchène (Fayard, Paris 1986) "Guide de la Provence mysterieuse" and "Provence Antique"by Jean-Paul Clebert (Ed.Sand, 1986), “Guide du Routard 1999” (ed.Hachette),"The Roman remains of Southern France", by James Bromwich (Routledge London 1993), « Old Provence », by Th.A.Cook (Rivingtons, London 1914), « Dictionnaire de la France médievale », by Jean Favier (Fayard, Paris 1993), “De Bloedige geschiedenis van Les Baux”, by J.Doornweerdt (ed.De Lannoo 1987)