THE VILLAGE
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It is a peaceful village located in the Bresque valley and built along a river of the same name. This village surrounded by wooded hills has kept its medieval appearance over the years with its old houses dating back to the XVIth century, its arches and its fountains. |
The picturesque village spreads out over 32.1km² at 156 meters altitude and counts a little less than 1000 Entrecastelains. The village's name is believed to come from its location between three castles positioned on the tops of the surrounding hills. The most remarkable feature of this medieval village is without doubt its impressive castle... |
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"LE CHÂTEAU" |
It's one of Var's most important historical monuments, representing seven centuries of history.
It is an ancient fortress built in the eleventh century, rebuilt in the thirteenth century and modified in this form in the sixteenth and the eighteenth century. |
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The castle has an extensive facade which looks like Italian architecture. It is simply decorated with wrought iron balustrades. This new style is expressed not only by the simplicity of the facade but also by the use of a four tier of Genoese tiles, which, in this context, is a conscious attempt to achieve rustic rural simplicity.
To the north, the castle opens onto a large terrace built on vaulted cellars. |
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The buttresses, the arms room and the oubliettes date back to the XIth century. The rooms are very bright due to the many openings.
The gardens as well as the circular ice storage room were designed in the XVIIIth century by Le Nôtre, the famous architect of those of Versailles. |
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The legend
A long time ago, a treasure was hidden in the basement of the castle. As the owner of the castle wanted his treasure to be well protected, he gave a particularly horrid order. He had all the people who helped hide the treasure buried alive in the oubliettes. The secret had to be kept!
It is said that, since then, on full moon nights, all around the castle, people have heard the complaints of the damned souls screaming for their freedom. |
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This castle is also known for its inhabitants, some of them are famous. Here are two interesting examples: |
Antoine Raymond Joseph de Bruni, Knight and Admiral of Entrecasteaux was born on the 8th of November, 1737 in Aix-en Provence and died on the 20th of July, 1793 in the Pacific Ocean. He was a French commander sent by Louis XVI to search La Pérouse expedition in 1791. He was the commander of two frigates, the "Recherche" and the "Espérance".
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La Pérouse had been sent by Louis XVI on an expedition around the world to complete James Cook's work in the Pacific Ocean. La Pérouse expedition disappeared in 1788 near Vanikoro in the Solomon Islands.
The Admiral of Entrecasteaux could never find La Pérouse and died of scurvy. Nevertheless his expedition was a huge success as numerous new lands were discovered amongst which an island that Entrecasteaux named "The Island of the Recherche". It is on this island - also called Vanikoro - that the survivors of La Pérouse expedition and maybe la Pérouse himself had taken shelter! |
Jean-Baptiste de Bruny, Marquess of Entrecasteaux was born in Aix on the 19th of july, 1758. In November, 1776 he married lady Angélique Pulchérie de Castellane Saint Juers who was nineteen years old. At the beginning, this arranged marriage seemed to be a happy one. But one day, the Marquess fell in love with Lady Mayol de Saint Simon. His marriage became a nightmare, he tried to poison his wife twice.
On the 31st of July, 1784 Lady Angélique was found dead in bed, her throat had been cut by a razor. An empty purse was found on the floor and a chest had been torn open but there weren't any signs of a break-in. The strangest fact was that none of her jewels were missing. During the investigations, the police learnt that the Marquess had bought some rat poison and that a few days before lady Angélique had been sick after drinking a glass of wine. During the search of the house the police noticed a missing razor in the Marquess's sponge bag. From then on he was considered the main suspect. He ran away to Portugal where he was arrested. Finally, he died in prison. The razor was found 25 years later in the garden of the castle by workers who were replanting it.
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