Village perché

A village perché is a village perched at the top of a relief, most commonly found in France. Naturally difficult to access, often with ramparts, 'villages perchés' are for the most part fortified settlements dating from the Middle Ages. Many are located in the south-east of France in the present Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, this type of habitat considered typical of Provence. The villages, situated on their "rocky acropolis", have retained their medieval appearance, from the orientation of the facades of their houses - towards the valley or the road of communication - a true front of fortification. Fernand Benoit emphasizes their occasional prehistoric origin by pointing out that Cicero, in reference to the Ligurians who inhabited the region, called them castellani, inhabitants of the castellas (Brutus, LXXIII, 256).