Le Thoronet
History and heritage :
Located in the heart of the Var, the village of Le Thoronet, created by the families of the abbey's tenant farmers by forming different hamlets, benefits from an environment and a preserved nature. Surrounded by hills, pines, oaks, olive trees and vines reign.
With its superb 12th century Cistercian Abbey and its surroundings, Le Thoronet is an ideal holiday destination for history, heritage and walking enthusiasts. The Abbey is the oldest of the 3 Cistercian abbeys in Provence.
It is watered for 26 kilometres by the Argens, a river which provides, on hot summer days, places of peace and coolness where it is good to practice kayaking, swimming or fishing to the sound of cicadas...
The situation :
9 kilometres from Le Canet des Maures and 11 kilometres from Le Luc. One hour's drive from Marseille airport and the Aix TGV station and 45 minutes from Toulon/Hyères airport.
Living in Le Thoronet :
With its 2,242 inhabitants, Le Thoronet offers all the local shops and easy access to supermarkets.
Nursery and primary schools.
To see/do :
The Place Vermot / the boulodrome, nicknamed "les suies" at the beginning of the century, where the villagers deposited compost and manure and where a square was assigned to each villager owning a horse.
The washhouse, where only women, called bugadières, were allowed to go. As the washhouse was very low, the bugadières would kneel on wooden crates in order to scrub and wash the clothes. Next to it, a large cauldron filled with water and ashes was waiting to be poured over the white linen to bleach and disinfect it.
The cooperative cellar: at the beginning of the 20th century, a great wine crisis with overproduction and the arrival of Algerian wines, as well as the so-called "sugar wines" which inflated the volume of the wine, led to a "slump", which caused the revolt of the winegrowers.
In 1910, in order to get out of this crisis, the winegrowers started the construction of a building and joined together in a cooperation. The construction of the cellar was completed in 1914. You can see a fresco made by a local artist on the façade.
The tiled gargoyle at no. 16 La grande rue, which was used to drain off waste water.
The placette des Trois Ormeaux where the blacksmith used to shoe horses and mules.
Its church, the Recoux mine and its viewpoint,...
Why buy in Le Thoronet :
Le Thoronet was ranked in 2022 as one of the best villages in France to live in.