Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Tour de Mirabel is a medieval vestige located in the municipality of Mirabel, in Ardèche, in the heart of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. This square dungeon, built in black basalt bellows with clear limestone angle links, is the only remaining element of a fortified complex that included two castles: one Catholic, the other Protestant. The tower stands on the edge of the Basaltic massif of Coiron, offering a strategic view of the Auzon valley and the roads between Bas Vivarais and Privas and Aubenas.

The site played a key role during the Wars of Religion in the 17th century, particularly during the attack of the troops of Montmorency in June 1628. The tower, having resisted the destruction of this period, symbolizes the rivalry between Catholics and Protestants in the region. The Catholic castle, belonging to the lords of La Roche des Astars, was dismantled in the seventeenth century, while the Protestant castle, owned by the lords of Arlempdes, retained only its dungeon.

The excavations and restorations initiated in 1970 by a private owner, Pierre Margot Belrichard, revealed the remains of the fortifications. He also documented the history of the site in a book published in the Revue du Vivarais. The Mirabel Tower, classified as a historic monument since 1972, today embodies eight centuries of local history, marked by religious conflicts and defensive architecture.

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