Eygalières is perhaps the most beautiful village in the Alpilles, located on the northern edge of the massif 10 km from Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.
Vast fields of olive trees
Eygalières is a small village where you can spend the day strolling, admiring its oratories, fountains and washhouses or eating in one of its charming restaurants or cafes. On Friday mornings, the village comes alive with its large Provençal market. Surrounded by the superb landscape of the Alpilles, the village faces vast fields of olive trees, green valleys and vineyards. In this decor worthy of the most beautiful postcards, are nestled very beautiful properties with superb farmhouses restored with taste. Arriving in Eygalières, the eye is immediately drawn to the top of its rocky peak. Up there stand a statue of the Virgin and a tower surmounted by a bell in its campanile. You can leave your vehicle at the bottom of the village, next to the new Saint Laurent church, built in 1905 in a neo-Romanesque style. From there, we follow the street that runs along beautiful houses with carved doors – here, no pastel tones, the houses are in the very image of the limestone rock of the Alpilles. After a bit of easy walking, we arrive at the top.
Splendid panoramas
Built in 1672 with stones from the castle, the Clock Tower is the symbol of the independence of Eygalières. In 1660, the villagers paid the ransom of their lord, the Duke of Guise, taken hostage by the Spaniards. As a reward, they gained the manorial rights of their village. Next to the 13th century keep, only the vaulted ground floor remains. The statue of the Virgin was placed on the roof in 1893 to commemorate a miracle, and still seems to watch over the village. The site offers splendid panoramas over the Alpilles and the surrounding area. Note the towers of the old mills, one of which, the Prior’s Tower, is now converted into a dovecote. Still on the heights, emerging from the ruins of the castle and the old village, is the Chapel of the Penitents from 1581 whose bell tower has no bell. It served as a mass grave during the great plague of 1720. Today it houses the Maurice Pezet Local History Museum. A little further down, the old Saint-Laurent church, made of paired stones with a slate roof, dates from the 12th century. Revamped in the 17th century, it has lost none of its Romanesque style. Its bell tower was destroyed during the Revolution; rebuilt later it never found its bell. The missing bells seem to be an idiosyncrasy of Eygalières.
A large provencal market
1.4 km east of the village center you can see the Saint Sixte Chapel placed on a mound and framed by cypresses. You have probably already seen it: it is the iconic image of Provence and Romanesque art. From the time when a hermit lived there alone, marauders came to steal his only companion, the bell. Since then, when the strong mistral comes to sweep the plain, the winds blow silently through the pinnacle…. Eygalières is a fairly small village but you can spend the day walking there, admiring its oratories, fountains and washhouses or eating in one of the restaurants or cafes. On Friday mornings, the village comes alive with its large Provençal market.
