Orange, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur 84100

An impressive townhouse with two towers and a hanging garden, perched at the top of a village and facing Mont Ventoux, on the outskirts of Orange. The building is divided into several sections, flanked to the north and south by two square towers bearing pennant weathervanes on hip roofs, covered with old Roman tiles. The towers are accessed via an interior spiral stairway, dating from the 14th century, and by an 18th century stairway, laid with age-old traditional terracotta tiles. One section of the existing building was probably constructed in the 14th century on the ruins of a fortified castle built earlier by one of the first Orange-Nassau princes. Although its successive owners have greatly modified its appearance, it still bears traces of all these occupations. Remodelled in 1763 after a partial collapse, then in 1850 when it was 'modernised' and lastly in the 1970s, it has undergone numerous works which, now, do not help identify the original accesses or the initial vocation of the rooms.The south facade, overlooking the street, does not exude a spectacular character and willingly reflects a certain soberness. A Virgin, installed on one corner in the 17th century and a robust oak wood door, sculpted in a diamond pattern, dating from the late 18th century, barely manage to lighten the austerity, reinforced by an anonymous ochre-coloured rendering that conceals a much older facade.If local legend is to be believed, the building was home to troubadour, Raimbaut of Orange), the oldest of Provence's troubadours, who established his 'courts of love' there, where he died at the age of 33 years. The sign of the 'heart on fire', a sign of passion sculpted in the stone, the wrought ironwork, the glazing as well as the frieze, with its lyre, above the main entrance, all bear witness to this poetical, if hypothetical occupation.The garden, hanging above the patio and the terraces, preserves an ethereal atmosphere enclosed by protective walls, providing absolute tranquillity. And lastly, a short distance away, a vegetable garden is concealed behind a barn.