Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Chartreuse de la Verne, known as Notre-Dame de Clémence Monastery, was founded in 1170 by the bishops Pierre Isnard de Toulon and Frédol d'Anduze de Fréjus. Located in the commune of Collobrières, in the Maures massif, it was the first Cartus settlement in the region, inspired by the Chartreuse de Montrieux. His name could come from the Latin verna (slave), the Provençal verno (aulna), or from a pagan goddess, Laverna. The first Romanesque church, consecrated in 1174, was destroyed by fire and then looted in 1416, but the monastery persisted until the Revolution.

Several fires (1214, 1271, 1318) ravaged the buildings, saving only the church. Rebuilt on several occasions, the Chartreuse enjoyed a spiritual influence marked until its confiscation in 1789 by the Constituent Assembly. In 1790 his goods were inventoried before being sold as national goods in 1792. The current remains, mainly from the 17th and 18th centuries, bear witness to restorations using the Moorish green serpentine, a local stone extracted from the quarries of La Môle.

Ranked a historic monument in 1921, the Chartreuse was restored from the 1960s thanks to the commitment of the Water and Forest Administration and the Friends of the Verne Association. Since 1983, it has been home to a community of nuns of the Monastery Family of Bethlehem, reviving its spiritual vocation. The site, accessible by a managed forest trail, retains remarkable elements such as the cloister, the chapel, or the statue of Notre-Dame de Clémence overlooking the poterne.

The history of the Verne is also that of his priors, some of whom became bishops, such as Didier de Toulon or Stephen, his successor. Others, like Jean-Baptiste Giraud or Mathias Régis, marked the monastery by their multiple mandates in the 17th and 18th centuries. The archives also reveal donations of land by local families, such as the Felgueriis, strengthening its anchor in the territory.

Today, the Chartreuse combines heritage and monastic life. Visitors can discover a witness hermitage, organized according to the Cartusian model, while the bell of the seventeenth century, classified in 1982, is displayed at the town hall of Collobrières. The site, surrounded by a cedral, offers an immersion in Provencal history and spirituality, between medieval memory and contemporary renaissance.

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