Lorgues: collegiate church, fountains and Tuesday market

Lorgues is a small town of about 10,000 residents in the Var, 17 km and 22 minutes south of Tourtour. It keeps remains of ramparts built around 1156, an 18th-century Saint-Martin collegiate church listed as a historic monument, and around twenty fountains and wash houses, including the 12th-century Font Couverte. Its weekly market is held on Tuesday mornings. The vineyards produce Côtes-de-Provence wines, with a cooperative winery and a dozen estates. The Thoronet abbey is in the neighbouring municipality.

Lorgues at a glance

The Saint-Martin collegiate church

Built in the 18th century and listed as a historic monument, the Saint-Martin collegiate church was founded in 1705 at the initiative of André Hercule de Fleury. Its high altar carries a Virgin attributed to Pierre Puget, and one of its bells dates from 1623. It houses a large organ.

The fountains

Lorgues has around twenty fountains and wash houses. Not to be missed:

• the Font Couverte, from the 12th century;
• the Noix fountain, from the 18th century, on Place du Revelin;
• the fountain on Place des Ormes.

The ramparts and old Lorgues

Around 1156, the Knights Templar built new ramparts around the town. Remains survive, with the fortified wall and its belfry. Cours de la République, lined with fine townhouses, runs through the centre.

The chapels

The Notre-Dame des Salettes chapel, also called Notre-Dame de Belval, is a 15th-century monument decorated with frescoes and protected as a historic monument.

The market and the wine

The weekly market is held on Tuesday mornings. The Lorgues vineyards produce AOC Côtes-de-Provence wines, around the Cellier des Lorguians cooperative winery and a dozen private estates.

From Tourtour

Lorgues is 22 minutes by car, and the ZOU 8125 bus line links Tourtour and Lorgues. On a Tuesday, the Lorgues market in the morning combines with Villecroze or Salernes in the afternoon. The Thoronet abbey is in the neighbouring municipality, about 9 km away.