|  In
the heart of the old town
Fontvieille is situated 9 kms away from the city of Arles, in the heart of
Provence, door of "la vallée des Baux". The origine of the
village dates back to primeval time. Until the french revolution, the history of
Fontvieille followed the history of Arles and of the abbey de Montmajour. Then
from 1790 on it has been set as a commune.
The village has been first formed by men working in quarries. They installed
themselves around the old fontain. In french : "vieille fontaine",
origine of the name of the village. They could then hew the stones from the rock
onto wich the village was built. The exploitation of the quarry allowed
flourishing times wich reached their apogee in the XIX century, around 1860,
when the city of Marseille was built.
The agricultural aspect of the village is also very important. Before 1914 the
dryness of the ground and a lack of water enable only cereal crops and standing
crops such as olives trees and wine. The aggregate amount of culture represented
several hundred thousand feet. A "poor" culture that nevertheless
allowed to attain a flourishing economy.
After the first world war, was built the canal de Provence that permit to
irrigate the entire vallée des Baux. then started a large scale
production of fruits and vegetables wich now a day represents a very important
part of the local production.
The surrounding hils are a real interplay of scents, such as thyme, rosemary and
lavender. essence of our Provençal soil. Looking down hill are the four
mills sang by Alphonse Daudet, thanks to whom Fontvieille's notoriety has been
made.
The "Lettres de mon moulin", translated in many different languages,
have interrested countless readers all over the world. Hundred thousand visitors
come every year to admire the well known mill, source of inspiration of the
famous author of "La chèvre de Mr Seguin" and of so many tales
that brought charm and poesy in our childhood
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Alpilles
