Chapelle Notre Dame du Beausset-Vieux

The chapel was built in the roman-ogival provençal style in the XIIth century by the bishops of Marseilles. It functioned as the local parish church until 1506, the year in which the villagers abandoned the hill.
The Chapel of Our Lady of Beausset-Vieux
The site is a recognised National Historical Monument since 20 February 1970.

The chapel was built in the roman-ogival provençal style in the XIIth century by the bishops of Marseilles. It functioned as the local parish church until 1506, the year in which the villagers abandoned the hill to resume life on the plain below.
It remained a place of pilgrimage, however, and today contains a gilded wooden statue of the Virgin created in 1712 by Louis Ollivier in the workshops of Pierre Puget in Toulon (classed a National Historical Monument on 5 December 1983). It also houses a fine collection of ex-votos from the XVIIIth and XIXth centuries (classed a National Historical Monument on 11 September 1995).
Since 1961 the Friends of Beausset-Vieux have devoted much time and energy to restore, maintain and exhibit the site and its treasures.

(M.H. 1995)THE EX-VOTO OF OUR LADY OF BEAUSSET-VIEUX (M.H. 1995)
The precious ex-votos, many created by a local painter, Eusèbe Nicolas, are displayed in a gallery alongside the chapel. These painted miniatures, offered in thanks for favours received, recount the miracles attributed to Our Lady of Beausset-Vieux. A custom which reached its peak in the 19th century, the ex-voto also vividly depicts scenes from the everyday lives of our ancestors. In contrast with other regions of France, the ex-votos of western Provence are found far beyond the traditional milieu of seafarers.

THE WAY OF THE SHRINES
Twelve shrines, restored by the municipality in 2010, signpost the prilgrim trail from the village to the romanesque chapel. Make the trip and rediscover the traditions and the provençal customs surrounding the saints in whose honour our ancestors erected these shrines. An illustrated brochure (in French) is available from the Tourist Office.

SPECTACULOR LOOKOUT
At 380m, the summit of Our Lady of Beausset-Vieux offers a breathtaking view of the bay of Saint-Cyr-les-Lecques and the Bec de l’Aigle (Eagle’s Beak) of La Ciotat, the perched villages and the high wooded hills of West Toulon, the vineyards of Bandol and the imposing chain of the Sainte-Baume range.

MASS TIMES
On 1st Januaryat 10h00 and on 14th August at 17h30 (moved forward from the 15th August). Official pilgrimages : Easter Monday ; Pentecost Monday; Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on either the Sunday before or the Sunday after the 8th of September.