Castles around Cotignac: 6 remarkable sites in Provence Verte

Provence Verte lives up to its name. It’s an ocean of oaks, vines and pines. But when you raise your eyes to the ridges or follow the course of a river, the landscape hardens. Stone reigns supreme.

Around Cotignac, several castles form a fascinating historical geography. For us at Beaumas, these buildings are not just monuments: they are masters. They teach us how to build with the landscape, how to tame the slope and how to cross the centuries.

Here’s our roadmap for an architectural stroll through the valley’s guardians.

1. Entrecasteaux: Classic harmony

10 minutes from Cotignac

It’s the next-door neighbor, the one you can’t miss. Resting on its rocky outcrop, Château d’Entrecasteaux is strikingly elegant. It’s the perfect blend of the military rigor of a fortress and the gentle lifestyle of a pleasure residence. What really catches our eye here are the gardens. Designed in the spirit of Le Nôtre, they create a fascinating dialogue: the string-trimmed boxwoods respond to the wild disorder of the surrounding forest. A lesson in balance.

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2. Montfort-sur-Argens : The enigma of the Templars

15 minutes from Correns and Carcès

In the village of Montfort-sur-Argens stands the Château des Templiers, one of the Order’s few and most important commanderies in the Var. This site is a lesson in historical resilience: after the fall of the Knights Templar, the castle passed to the Order of Hospitallers (Order of Malta), who rebuilt and transformed it. It features a fascinating blend of medieval military architecture (the square towers) and Renaissance elements (mullioned windows, genoises on the roof). It embodies the permanence of the place, which, whatever the era, has always been a center of power and management of agricultural estates, a notion of heritage that spans the centuries.

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3. Vins-sur-Caramy: the breath of rebirth

20 minutes south of Cotiganc

As we descend towards the Caramy valley, the scenery changes. The Château de Vins takes us by surprise. Here, the medieval fortress has given way to the grace of the Renaissance. You can feel the Italian influence: a courtyard of honor designed for light, loggias, architecture made for music and the arts. Restored with infinite patience by its current owners, it is living proof that a place can rise from its ashes if you put your heart into it. A resilience that inspires us every day.

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4. Saint-Martin-de-Pallières: The stone giant

25 minutes west of Cotiganc

You have to climb to reach it. Château de Saint-Martin is a colossus. Austere and immense, it dominates the entire Haut-Var region with silent authority. But his real treasure is hidden. In its bowels lies the “Cathédrale Souterraine”, a monumental water cistern, the only one of its kind in Europe. It reminds us that in Provence, the real luxury has always been water. The ingenuity deployed here to capture and conserve this resource is a marvel of functional architecture.

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5. Correns & Miraval: The secret

15 minutes west of Cotignac

Continuing towards Correns, France’s first organic village, we come across another silhouette: Fort Gibron. This former 12th-century abbey residence, now a cultural center, watches over the Argens River. But it’s in the hollow of the valley that the most famous of all estates is hidden: Miraval. Although its doors remain closed to the public, its presence permeates the valley. This is the archetypal Provencal wine estate that has become a global icon, combining exceptional terroir and absolute confidentiality. A perfect example of those “off-market” places whose value lies as much in their walls as in the secrecy that surrounds them.

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6. La Verdière: The stamp of nobility

35 minutes northwest of Cotignac

For lovers of grand pageantry, the Château de La Verdière is the place to be. Often considered the largest in the region, it bears witness to the opulence of the great Provencal families. With its impressive dimensions and classical architecture, it offers a different interpretation of history: one of grandeur and durability. He reminds us that in the Var, heritage is not only in small stones, but also in the splendors of nobility.

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Why take the Var castles route?

Because these places shape our imagination. When we visit a bastide or village house for you, we often seek out, without saying so, those details inherited from the great lords: the reassuring thickness of a wall, the freshness of a vault, the nobility of a cut stone.

These castles bear witness to the fact that beauty, when it’s right, is eternal.