Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The former Carmelite convent of Aix-en-Provence, founded in 1624, was originally accompanied by a first chapel built in 1625. This religious site, located in Forbin Square at the top of the Mirabeau River, embodies the classical Provencal architecture. The present chapel, built between 1695 and 1701 according to the plans of architect Thomas Veyrier, is distinguished by its facade designed by Laurent Vallon in 1697. Its interior, inspired by the style of Pierre Puget, includes an elliptical dome and composite pilasters, while two bas-reliefs by Veyrier, formerly on the high altar, are now preserved at the Tapestries Museum.

During the French Revolution, the Carmelites were expelled, and the chapel became a temple of Reason. In 1796, the convent was sold as a national good, leading to the dispersion of its furniture, including a baroque altar. In the 19th century, Saint Eugene de Mazenod, founder of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, purchased the site in 1816 to make it a house of priestly formation, the first foundation of his congregation. The chapel, listed as a historic monument in 1911, has been home to a statue of de Mazenod and is still serving as a place of worship and an international centre for the Oblates.

Today, the convent, partially protected (façades, cloister, 17th century murals attributed to Trophime Bigot), still belongs to the Oblates. Renovated in 2014, it hosts the Eugène-de-Mazenod International Centre (CIEM), a home for students and priests from all over the world. The chapel, open to the public, offers daily masses, art exhibitions and concerts, while preserving its architectural and spiritual heritage. Elements such as the Mazenod Room (a vaulted room in the basement) or the remains of murals recall its bimillennial history.

The legal protections cover the old chapel (classified in 1911), the facades and roofs of the western wing, the galleries of the cloister with their paintings, and the choir of the nuns. The wall paintings of the upper parts, classified in 1996, bear witness to the decorative richness of the seventeenth century. The site, both a place of memory and a living space, illustrates the religious and social transformations of Provence, from the Ancien Régime to today.

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