Abbaye du Thoronet

«Theres is no virtue more essential to man than the one of humble simplicity» - St. Bernard Le Thoronet Abbey was founded in 1146 according to this principle. It is a Cistercian abbey, built in the hinterland of the Var departement.

The architecture is simple and gives the building a great charm. The abbey is one of the three sisters of Provence with the abbey of Our Lady of Senanque and the abbey of Silvacane.

Listed as a French historical monument in 1840 and bought buy the French State in 1854, it has been continually restored since, in accordance with the original architecture. Le Thoronet Abbey is surrounded buy a oaks forest. It is a place where simplicity meets calm and give visitors a feeling of peace and well-being.

The abbey houses every year two festivals: in July, the Medieval Music Festival of Le Thoronet and in August, the Music and Spirit Festival, a festival of vocal music and chamber music.

Photo credit: Patrick Rouzet, licence CC-BY-SA-3.0