Did you know that the Batterie du Mont-Rose has guarded this coastline for centuries? It stands as a silent witness to Marseille’s ever-changing story. Today, we explore the hidden tales within these ancient stones.
The Batterie du Mont-Rose is more than just a military site. It is a place where history, nature, and local lore intertwine. This area, typical of the Calanques, features limestone, Mediterranean plants, and a desert-like terrain. Surprisingly, this spot and Frioul are the driest locations in France. Mont Rose rises 84 meters high, a rocky spur between the land and the sea.
The site has been recognized since the 11th century. It was then called “mons rotundus”. Locals later knew it as “lo grant mont redon”, meaning the big round mountain. This expression remains in the name of the neighboring village, Madrague de Montredon.
In the early 18th century, the Roze family owned Mont Redon and the surrounding land. They built a bastide here, which you can still see. Nicolas Roze, a knight, made the family famous during the 1720 plague. He stayed in this very bastide. Roze organized the evacuation of corpses, supplied the city, and established a hospital. He even survived the plague himself. To honor this legend, Mont Redon was renamed Mont Rose.
The Batterie du Mont-Rose also saw Marseille’s industrial boom. Factories appeared in the Calanques as early as 1810. One factory had a long chimney that climbed the hill. It vented toxic fumes away from homes.
Mont Rose has been a strategic military point since the 19th century. It remained so through World War II. At one point, about ten cannons were here. A German anti-tank wall once blocked the road between La Madrague and Saména. You can still see its remains. The army declassified the Batterie du Mont-Rose in 2005. However, many military remnants still dot Marseille’s southern coastline. The coastal battery appeared in a report by the Coast Defense Commission on February 19, 1886. It was marked as a priority for construction. It once housed five 24 cm Mle 1876 cannons. It also had an annex battery with four 95 mle 1888 cannons. Germans requisitioned and disarmed it in 1943. They equipped the site with a FuMG Seetakt FuMO radar.
Inside a cave at the hill’s summit lies the Rostan d’Ancezune family tomb. They bought the land from the Roze family in 1776.
For a time, the Batterie du Mont-Rose became a maritime radio transmission center. Later, France Télécom used it. You can still spot the 32-meter-high maritime radio center pylon. The site fell into disuse. Squatters occupied it until 2011.
Today, a detachment of the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment permanently occupies the Batterie du Mont-Rose. They are comfortably installed here. Their daily tasks include surveillance and site improvement. They have been working to restore the site after years of neglect.
As you explore, remember that Mont Rose is also a biodiversity hotspot. It is home to Aleppo pines and the tiny Edwards’s psammodromus lizard. This lizard has lived here for five million years.
Before you leave, take a moment to appreciate the Batterie du Mont-Rose. It is a place of history and natural beauty. It connects us to Marseille’s past and present.