Fort de Brégançon, Presidential fortress in Bormes-les-Mimosas, France.

The Fort de Brégançon is a fortress on a rocky islet about 35 metres above the Mediterranean, linked to the coast at Bormes-les-Mimosas by a causeway built on the orders of General de Gaulle. Its main body is a long rectangular block of light tan masonry with a flat top and a row of small windows; a lower crenellated wall wraps a terrace to the left. The islet measures about 2,000 m², and the medieval châtelet with two round towers and a rock-cut moat survives beneath the later defences.

The fortification arose in the Merovingian period as protection against seaborne raiders and expanded during the Middle Ages. In 1968 the complex was designated as the summer residence of French presidents and has since welcomed numerous international guests.

The name comes from the Provençal Bregançoun, recorded as Pergantion in the 6th century and de Breganzone around 1200. The island held a Ligurian oppidum and later a Greek trading post. Since 1968 the fort has served as the President's summer retreat; Charles de Gaulle ordered the artificial jetty that now links it to the mainland, and François Mitterrand received Chancellor Helmut Kohl there in 1985.

The fort sits on a 35-metre rocky islet reached by a causeway ordered by General de Gaulle, extended by a platform used for staff parking and as a heliport. The site is a classified monument and state residence, so access is not continuous; check opening arrangements before travelling to Bormes-les-Mimosas.

The property alternates between private use by the head of state and public visits, with the Centre des Monuments Nationaux managing visitor access. The coastal position made the fortress a strategic observation point for shipping movements in the western Mediterranean for centuries.