Southern FRANCE
There is a rugged fringe of mountains in south-eastern France, studded with ancient villages above one of the Mediterranean’s most gilded coasts. The Alpes-Maritimes was once the stronghold of the Knights Templar, who protected passing pilgrims on their way to the holy Land. Gareth huw
Davies lists his things to do in this tucked-away land of heroes…
1. KNIGHTS TO REMEMBER
KNIGHTFALL, a ten-part TV drama about the Knights Templar, launches on the History Channel in the autumn. The tourism industry in the Alpes-Maritimes is hoping for a Game Of Thrones effect for this overlooked region. The fictional quest for the treasures of the Knights Templar, formed in 1118 to protect pilgrims journeying to the Holy Land, is familiar through the Indiana Jones films and The Da Vinci Code. The knights’ real legacy is in the settlements of narrow, winding roads and pretty squares among lavender fields, vineyards and olive groves, where they were active for two centuries.
2. HOME FOR HERO
A SPLENDIDLY appropriate place to stay in the heart of Templar country is the 17th Century Chateau Haute Germaine (chateaugermaine. com). With six bedrooms and panoramic views to mountains and sea, it is owned and run by Captain Robert Lawrence MC, a hero of the 1982 Falklands War, and his wife Marion. They acquired the chateau, a 35-minute drive from Nice airport, in 2012 and restored it.
3. TREASURE TROVE
LEGEND has it that the Knights Templar buried a fabulous treasure at their stronghold, SaintMartin-de-Vence. Today Chateau Saint-Martin boasts a highend restaurant, with views over the glittering Mediterranean. Other ancient places with Templar links include the medieval villages of Le Broc, Biot, Gattieres, La Gaude, Tourrettes-sur-Loup, SaintLaurent-du-Var and Carros.
4. BEND IT LIKE BOND
THE mountains where the knights kept their protective vigil loom over the Cote d’Azur. The principality of Monaco sparkles brightest of all. There, the yachts are as big as mansions, champagne is the national drink, and even the railway station is as ornate as a pharaoh’s tomb. The best way to arrive is in an Aston Martin DB5, twirling down the hairpins of the Grande Corniche like James Bond in GoldenEye. You can hire one locally. The Grande Corniche is one of the world’s great roads with a view. Along the way is the dramatically sited village of Eze.
5. CANNES-DO ATTITUDE
THE resorts of the Cote d’Azur are less than an hour from the Templar villages. And you don’t need a gold-plated credit card for a day trip. In Cannes, the red-carpet film festival town, dress smartly and wear killer dark glasses to easily fit in on La Croisette. The twin resorts of Antibes and Juan-les-Pins were the haunt of Churchill, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Charlie Chaplin. Juan-les-Pins is the crucible of jazz in Europe and the birthplace of waterskiing. Antibes is a serene setting for painters.
6. BRONZE AGE BONANZA
Mercantour National Park is 25 miles north of Templar country, a sumptuous expanse of seven valleys, encircled by the region’s characteristic ‘perched villages’. Many of these hilltop communities date from the 12th and 13th Centuries. Their decorated churches are a big attraction.
One well-restored perched village is Belvedere, at the mouth to the sensational Gordolasque valley. At the foot of Mont Bego, in the Vallee des Merveilles (Valley of Marvels), is the astonishing collection of 37,000 Bronze Age petroglyphs, representing weapons, cattle and human figures.