Built around 1300 by Rainier Grimaldi, Seigneur de Cagnes, this fortified castle withstood numerous sieges and assaults for two centuries before being transformed into a seigneurial residence around 1620 by Baron Jean-Henri Grimaldi.
The transformations visible from the outside date from this period: the monumental double-flight staircase, the monumental marble-framed door surmounted by a balcony of honor, and the large windows that replaced the archways.
Acquired by the town in 1937, it became a municipal museum in 1946 and was classified as a Historic Monument in 1948. Today, it is a superb showcase for the Musée de l'Olivier, with a collection focused on this Mediterranean emblem and its traditions.
It also houses the Solidor Donation - 40 portraits of Suzy Solidor painted by illustrious artists such as Cocteau, Dufy, Foujita, Lempicka, Laurencin, Picabia, Van Donge... - and exceptional Baroque painted ceilings.
The Château-Musée Grimaldi also hosts temporary exhibitions of contemporary art, as well as numerous concerts.
The ramparts...
The medieval village, strategically perched atop the rocky spur of the hill, occupies a natural defensive position overlooking the plain and the Baie des Anges from Cap Ferrat to Cap d'Antibes.
These defensive walls, of rather crude construction, enclosed the town in a horseshoe shape with uneven branches, which followed the uneven terrain.
These ramparts bear witness to the turbulent past of a coveted border zone, since the nearby Var river was for a very long time, from 1388 to 1860, the natural border between the Comté de Provence and the Pays niçois, i.e. between the Kingdom of France and the States of the House of Savoy (now Italy).
Inhabitants used the collapsed walls as a stone quarry, reusing the materials to build their houses on the site of the now useless ramparts, drilling doors and windows into the sections of wall still standing, which they then incorporated into their barns and dwellings.
Guided tours of the Château-Musée Grimaldi
October to May: Wednesdays and Sundays at 11 a.m.
June to September (summer season): Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 11 a.m.
Meet at the entrance to the Château-Musée Grimaldi
Grimaldi Castle Museum
Haut-de-Cagnes - place du Château
06800 Cagnes-sur-Mer
Tel.: 04 92 02 47 35
https://tourisme.cagnes.fr/chateau-musee-grimaldi/
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