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Date: 1372
Period: Middle Ages
Type : Fortified architecture
Status : Property of the City of Arles Classified as a Historic Monument (1927)
Built at the time of the security rebellion that followed the medieval boom, the Tour de l'Ecorchoir saw some four centuries of sporadic threats and confrontations. It marks the south-western boundary of the Vieux-Bourg (now the Roquette district) and remains one of the last vestiges of the medieval ramparts on the banks of the Rhône. After many names, the one in use today has nothing to do with its military history, but rather with its more recent use as the town's abattoir. Isolated from the vanished rampart, and recently restored, the tower still bears witness to a time when a river was also a vehicle for warfare. Built of stone close to the Rhône, and still partly crenellated, the Ecorchoir tower is sixteen meters high. It has an internal staircase leading to the rampart walkway and could house several dozen soldiers. As an artillery platform and watchtower, it took part in many battles up to the 18th century. In 1758, at the request of the boatmen, a signal post was erected to signal the arrival of barges and lighters. The building thus returned to its original vocation of monitoring the river.
Period: Middle Ages
Type : Fortified architecture
Status : Property of the City of Arles Classified as a Historic Monument (1927)
Built at the time of the security rebellion that followed the medieval boom, the Tour de l'Ecorchoir saw some four centuries of sporadic threats and confrontations. It marks the south-western boundary of the Vieux-Bourg (now the Roquette district) and remains one of the last vestiges of the medieval ramparts on the banks of the Rhône. After many names, the one in use today has nothing to do with its military history, but rather with its more recent use as the town's abattoir. Isolated from the vanished rampart, and recently restored, the tower still bears witness to a time when a river was also a vehicle for warfare. Built of stone close to the Rhône, and still partly crenellated, the Ecorchoir tower is sixteen meters high. It has an internal staircase leading to the rampart walkway and could house several dozen soldiers. As an artillery platform and watchtower, it took part in many battles up to the 18th century. In 1758, at the request of the boatmen, a signal post was erected to signal the arrival of barges and lighters. The building thus returned to its original vocation of monitoring the river.
Date: 1372
Period: Middle Ages
Type : Fortified architecture
Status : Property of the City of Arles Classified as a Historic Monument (1927)
Built at the time of the security rebellion that followed the medieval boom, the Tour de l'Ecorchoir saw some four centuries of sporadic threats and confrontations. It marks the south-western boundary of the Vieux-Bourg (now the Roquette district) and remains one of the last vestiges of the medieval ramparts on the banks of the Rhône. After many names,...
Period: Middle Ages
Type : Fortified architecture
Status : Property of the City of Arles Classified as a Historic Monument (1927)
Built at the time of the security rebellion that followed the medieval boom, the Tour de l'Ecorchoir saw some four centuries of sporadic threats and confrontations. It marks the south-western boundary of the Vieux-Bourg (now the Roquette district) and remains one of the last vestiges of the medieval ramparts on the banks of the Rhône. After many names,...
