Forcalquier and its fortress

The convent with its cloister dates from 1634. One wing of the convent buildings was rebuilt in 1883 to house the town hall. The chapel, built in 1687 houses since 1930 a cinema. Its installation has also been controversial for many years, some seeing in an unfavourable light the use of a place of worship for entertainment purposes.

Notre-Dame-du-Bourguet, a major monument of Forcalquier is known since 1155. Later on, it became co-cathedral along with the Sisteron cathedral. Built, at the foot of the city, as a site both crossroads and a place of ancient market, it may have succeeded to an older building. It was a part of the defence system of the city, one of the doors opening near the porch. The organ, dating back to 1629, is a remarkable instrument used during services and concerts.

A magnificent panorama of Forcalquier, the Lure mountain, the Alps, the Valensole, Sainte-Baume, the Luberon... At the site of the castle of the Counts of Forcalquier, which remains the foundation stood the Notre-Dame-de-Provence (1875) and its carillon. The carillon rings every Sunday at 11:30 am and for the main celebrations. This is one of the very few manual carillons in Provence that chimes practicing the traditional game of "à coup de poing".

In this small hidden church, the choir and part of the nave date back to the eleventh century. The latter was extended in the 12th century, and the ensemble was changed in the 15th century. Located on the slope of fragile soil, the church has seen many landslides followed by numerous reconstructions. Listed as a historic monument, it awaits restoration.

Built in the end of the 16th century, it is the only evidence of Protestantism retained in Forcalquier. On the pediment, there is an inscription taken from the book of Isaiah: "Confess to the Lord, and invoke his name." The beautiful mansion to the right of the temple, dating back to the 17th century, belonged to a large Protestant family, GASSAUD.

After the fall of the tower of the Récollets, annoyed at not hearing the hours rung by the cathedral, the residents of Saint-Pierre complained to the municipality. In 1859, they built the present bell tower, topped by a wrought iron bellfry. The fountain, in turn, named Jeanne-d'Arc, dates back from the early 16th century. It was the last work of a major project initiated at the end of the previous century to bring water to the city.

Settled in 1627, in the church and the cloister house of Saint-Pierre, one of the four parishes in the city, of which we can still distinguish the roman oculus, the Recollect, Order of Friars Minor (Reformed Franciscans) had an important convent here. It was then transformed into a prison, where they will lock in 1851 the sub-prefect and the police officers rallying behind the coup d'état of Napoleon III against the republican opinion of the inhabitants of Forcalquier.

The old courthouse (1842 façade), which succeeded the former palace of the Counts of Forcalquier, has long housed the district court. A place also once called the Granatarié, meaning "up grain", has conserved the spiral staircase (1853), which joins Berenger street.

This door dates back to the 14th century. Today it is the only remaining gate of the six gates of the city whose defensive system also included 14 towers.

The Franciscan convent of the 13th century. experienced three centuries of prosperity before many vicissitudes during the wars of religion when it was sacked and even for a time became a Protestant church. You can stroll through its cloisters and gardens. The convent now houses a training center (European University of Flavors and Fragrances and an antenna of the agricultural high school Carmejane). Exhibitions are organized in season.

While we have no evidence that this Romanesque house, traditionally called the "Synagogue", has been a place of Jewish worship, we know that in the Middle Ages, Forcalquier was home to a large Jewish community settled in the vicinity of the Notre-Dame-du-Bourguet.