The Chartreuse de la Verne - Bormes les Mimosas Tourist Office

The Chartreuse de la Verne is a monastery dating from the 12th century perched in the heart of the Massif des Maures. It is located in the municipality of Collobrieres, but is located well away from the village. The impressive and mystical building se visit throughout the year at certain times, and it is definitely worth the detour. The Chartreuse is in fact classified as one of the monuments !

A grandiose and curious place

The Chartreuse de la Verne can be visited throughout the yearIts appearance today bears witness to the extensive reconstructions and restorations that have enabled it to reborn many times! The buildings are built on a rocky elevation, which limits external intrusions. The monumental entrance door is made of volcanic marble du Massif des Maures. A large part is visitable : from its interior, to its cloisters, passing by the old prison or the bakery! You will find there a monastic shop open at the same times as the Visits, except on Sundays. Even today, around thirty nuns, having taken a vow of silence, live there.

Do you know the origin of the word "Verne"?

To explain his etymology, there are several theories. L'church Romanesque in its heart would have been built on the remains of an ancient Temple of the goddess Laverna, goddess robbers and thieves in the Roman mythology. These thieves would be protected in a forest such as the Massif des Maures. Or the fact that Verna also means slave in Latin, and that it was the term used to designate the Saracens from Fraxinet (La Garde Freinet). Finally, we also think about the use of the word verne designating a tree, which is also called alder. And indeed, alders are common on the banks of the river flowing at the bottom of the valley.

A turbulent history

Founded in 1170 by bishops de Toulon and Fréjus, it has long been inhabited and maintained by chartreux. She crosses many Fire, then pillages by surrounding lords or Saracens. But each time, its residents mobilize and find the resources to restore it. Thanks to donations, the monastery's lands expand, until it owns a plot of land of more than 3000 hectares. But during the Revolution, the Carthusians were forced to flee. The imposing structure and its vast lands gradually fell intooversightNature is reclaiming its rights, which is causing serious damage to the structures.

Despite this, in 1921 it was classified monument as a "relic in the forest". In 1961, the Water and Forests Department assigned a guard there. Finally, in 1968, an association " Friends of La Verne " is doing everything possible to revive and restore this forest behemoth. From 1986, nuns from the monastic family of Bethlehem, the Assumption of the Virgin and Saint Bruno settled there and very important works were carried out. This vast restoration is possible thanks to the consort of the association, the monastic family, the Look out, of the commune and the department; and continues today thanks to you, the many visiteurs !