Montaren and Uzes - The culture, history and places to eat, shop and visit

Uzes - The premier Duche de France

In Uzès’s 16th-century heyday, the Duke of Uzès was one of the most influential men in France. Now his imposing castle – occasionally inhabited by the 17th Duke of Uzès – is open to visitors. Besides a glimpse into a nearly 1,000-year history, visitors can enjoy a disarming peek into the private lives of French nobility through centuries of portraits and charming anecdotes about the characters who have lived here.

One of its more colourful inhabitants was beautiful Anne de Mortemart, the dashing wife of the 12th Duke of Uzès. An avid equestrienne and hunter, she was also the first woman in France to possess a driver’s licence.

Interestingly, Uzès holds a lot of firsts for women. It was here in the ninth century that Dhuoda, Duchess of Septimania, became the first woman in France to write a book, while exiled from her husband in the castle keep. Uzès also lays claim to France’s first female mayor, Jeanne Palanque, who was elected in 1945, just one year after French women won the right to vote.

Uzès’s laid-back, live-and-let-live lifestyle may be a vestige of its Protestant roots, but it’s more likely a sign of the people who have gravitated here from around the world for its beauty, serenity, gentle climate, natural bounty and, perhaps most of all, its light which has inspired artists and creatives down the centuries.

“If I chose Uzès, it was mainly for the light… even in winter when it can be cold, the light is beautiful,” said jeweller Bénédikt Aïchelé, and it’s something he knows all about. His jewellery boutique-atelier, tucked in an elegant corner just steps from L’Albiousse, features brilliant gemstones set in gold, platinum or tantalum, an inky black metal Aïchelé sets with black or white diamonds. His chic Bague d’Union ring is sought after across the whole of France after being featured in a French documentary.

Ceramicist Anna Karin Andersson, a native of Gothenburg, Sweden, moved to Paris in the 1990s for a career in fashion. But once she laid eyes on Uzès there was no turning back. “It was my paradise to move here. It’s the light that brings you to the south,” she said. Both the light and the nature surrounding the city inspire the winsome, whisper-thin porcelains she makes by hand in her chic boutique workshop at 9 Rue Port Royal.

Part of Uzès’s singularity lies in the tastefulness of its many art and ceramics galleries and high-end interiors and clothing boutiques. Though you will find a few touristy shops on the outskirts, the quality here is unusually high – a rule that also applies to its restaurants.

At the town’s only Michelin-star restaurant, La Table d’Uzès at the exquisite nine-room hotel Maison d’Uzès, chef Christophe Ducros serves an elegant five-course menu which highlights local produce in deeply French dishes such as succulent wild pigeon or a superb Saint-Jacques with a tartare of girolle mushrooms, all expertly paired with wines from every region of France. For a more casual, bistronomic experience, Racines, a five-minute walk from the city centre, has my vote. Here, happy diners of every age feast on chef Axel Grousset’s masterful dishes: langoustine rolls with tangy sauce gribiche or divinely garlicky avocado mousse served over a buttery sablé and topped with a cascade of velvety crabmeat.

Gourmands will also want to taste – and stock up on – the wonderful local olive oil, nut oils, tapenades and all manner of delights at Le Moulin d’Uzès, a few minutes by car from the city centre. Foodies may also want to time their visit to Uzès carefully: aim for the third week of January, when the ‘blessing of the truffles’ kicks off the annual truffle auction (also held in church).

In terms of climate, there is no 'best time' to visit Uzès it is stunningly beautiful as a traditional French location all year long though in late spring or early autumn, temperatures are pleasant without being stifling. July and August can be hot; it is also vibrant with visitors during these summer months. Nearby points of interest, such as the Pont du Gard, the ceramics town of Saint-Quentin-la-Poterie and the gem bastide village Lussan, are great places to visit.

Montaren et Saint Mediers

Montaren is a tranquil village and a restful place to live and holiday with just enough amenities so you never have to leave if you don’t want to, though only 4km from Uzes if you seek to balance that tranquillity with some hustle and bustle. All the reasons we chose to drag ourselves away from Uzes and move here, together with it being an authentic French village. We often walk or cycle into Uzes and also enjoy a bike ride into St Quentin La Poterie to eat or simply enjoy a glass of wine after the market in the square.

Montaren is often described as a small town, though with only one baker, one deli and one grocer, to us it is a perfect village. Surprisingly there is a mediatheque with a post office, which comes in very useful, along with a small brocante on the high street which also serves tea and coffee.

Set in the Gard, between the Rhone Valley and the Cevennes, the source of Montaren’s economy comes from olives, cereals and wines.

The handsome honey-coloured buildings have housed the community for centuries and the land in and around Montaren has been occupied since prehistoric times.

As with many French towns and villages the history is immense; the beauty of the village can be enjoyed just strolling around the lanes where you might come across the old Temple and its small individually walled gardens, or by walking and simply enjoying the vista of the surrounding Garrigue landscape.

There are frequent small markets on a Sunday morning in Montaren and in May there is a 3-day festival celebrating the locally grown chickpea! September is the time to look out for viticulture events in the village. Other events are listed on the notice board at the mediatheque. All seasonal festivals in the village generally involve a market running the length of the main street, pulling the community together and bringing people from further afield to share in celebrating Montaren et St Mediers.