"Lourmarin, the most charming village of the Luberon", wrote Bosco, in love with the beauty of the site. Ranked among the most beautiful villages in France, Lourmarin will also amaze Camus who will buy a house there.
These two great writers are buried in the commune.
Another renowned figure, Raoul Dautry, Minister of Reconstruction after 1945, who became Mayor in 1945, will contribute significantly to the effort of social and economic modernization of the village.
The castle of Lourmarin, "Little Villa Medici of Provence"
Situated in the heart of the Luberon Regional Natural Park, Lourmarin is famous in particular for its Renaissance castle, nicknamed "La Petite Villa Médicis de Provence". »
In 1475, Foulques III, chamberlain and personal friend of King René, had the "Château-Vieux" built on the north side with a small polygonal tower surmounted by crenellations.
Then Anne-Blanche de Lévis Ventadour, who had married, under the patronage of King François I in 1527 to Louis Artaud de Montauban, was to rebuild a Lourmarin according to her sumptuous tastes. She then called upon the greatest Italian masons to build the Renaissance building that we know as Château-Neuf, to which she added a superb double spiral staircase between 1539 and 1542.
Classified as a historical monument since 1973 and located in an exceptional setting facing the village, the Château de Lourmarin is composed of two parts:
- The old castle built at the end of the 15th century by Foulques d'Agoult and whose "great elegance" is symbolized by its Italian-style loggia,
- The 16th century Renaissance wing is fully furnished and contains collections from the 15th to the 19th century.
In summer, it becomes a residence for artists (painters, sculptors, musicians...). Also a Cultural Centre, it offers superb concerts in summer on the terraces of the Château (jazz, theatre, classical music...).
The rest of the year, the Association of Friends of Lourmarin organizes conferences on various themes (Truffle, Lavender, Einstein...).
And also...
In Lourmarin, you should also see the belfry, the Church of Saint Andrew and Saint Trophime, with its splendid Renaissance vaults and its majestic altarpiece dedicated to the patron saint, the Protestant Temple, the alleys and their ancient facades, the fountains, the Friday market, the art galleries...
The church of Saint-André-et-Saint-Trophime and its curious baptismal basin, which recalls the presence of the seigniory that built the village and its castle, as well as its imposing tower bell tower, symbolize with the 19th century Protestant temple and its clock tower the village of the three bell towers.
The Neolithic necropolis "Les Lauzières"
From the remains of walls, visible on a ridge at the top of a plateau overlooking the Combe de Lourmarin, we discover a necropolis dating back to the Final Neolithic-Chalcolithic nicknamed the Lauzières.
Excavations carried out between 1976 and 1982 brought to light a large amount of furniture dating back to the Neolithic period as well as remains attesting to the presence of a necropolis dating back to the Final Bronze Age, bones of human origin, ceramics and bronzes. No less than fourteen bronze bracelets with a convex cross-section have been discovered on the site.
Tourist Office
Place H. Barthelemy
84160 Lourmarin
Tel: 04 90 68 10 77
https://www.destinationluberon.com/decouvrir/villes-et-villages/lourmarin
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