Banon

Banon is a village in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, on a mountainside overlooking a valley. The sky is bright blue, and the sun shines 300 days a year. The climate is dry, ideal for feeling good.
The reputation of the village of Banon is due to the beauty of the landscapes, especially in summer with the purple-blue lavender fields stretching over vast estates, and the cheese commonly known as Banon.

The Story of Banon

The medieval village of Banon, located at the top of the village, is bordered by the remains of the ramparts of the old castle. The machicoulis gate, from the fourteenth century, is the main entrance (for pedestrians).
The ramparts, of which a beautiful example can be admired between the portal and the square tower, had a circumference of 800 meters, one meter thick and ten meters high.
It is on these ramparts that the houses of the rue des Arcades were built. In one of them, J.F. Palhier, deputy from the department of the "Council of Five Hundred" of the Revolution, sheltered the escape of Robespierre the younger and Ricord in August 1793. Facades of medieval shops have remained in some places.

At the highest point of the village, by the old Hôtel-Dieu and against the disused church, on the site of a mound, stood at the beginning of the twelfth century a fortified castle of the Simianes, lords of Banon. This castle was remodeled in the thirteenth century and replaced in the eighteenth century by a rather modest castle that was burned down during the revolution, forcing Alexandre de Tournon-Simiane, the last owner, to flee. It is said that he set off along the path of the spring of the Brieux and that when he turned around one last time before losing sight of Banon, he saw only a pile of wood and stones. The adjacent church was remodeled many times and partially rebuilt on the remains of the castle chapel. According to a plan of Banon built in 1782, the old Hôtel-Dieu then consisted of two blocks of three and four houses, including the hospital and the village oven. It was established in 1830 under the name "Hôtel-Dieu de l'Immaculée Conception", the southern part reserved for nuns was called "Maison des Soeurs." It functioned for nearly a hundred years and was then replaced at the foot of the village by a new hospital/hospice, built thanks to the generosity of Dieudonné Collomp, after whom it is named. The Hôtel-Dieu was used during the last war to house refugees who had been displaced from their homes by the war of 1939-1945. This village has experienced various attacks, including those from Raimon de Turenne in the 14th century who occupied the castle, then a siege led by the lord of Montbrun, and, in the 7th year of the revolution, the massacres carried out by organized robber bands.

Translated from French

Source: Village de Banon – Mairie de Banon

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