Abbaye de Florièyes, Medieval Cistercian abbey in Tourtour, France

The Abbaye de Florièyes stands on a wooded hillside in Tourtour, in the Var. Its lower walls are rough grey and tan masonry with a row of small dark openings near the base; above rises a smoother pale grey and cream facade with rectangular windows. The roof is low-pitched and covered in weathered grey-brown tiles, with two small square stone chimneys capped by shallow pyramidal tops. Only ruins and a chapel remain.

The abbey was founded in 1136 and marked the first Cistercian settlement in Provence. It remained a significant location for religious ceremonies until the monks relocated to another monastery in the middle of the 12th century.

After the monks moved to Le Thoronet, Florièyes became a priory, and the abbots of Le Thoronet went there to pray at the chapel of Notre-Dame de Florielle upon their appointment, a journey of about six hours. The stream below the site is also called Florieye, Florielle or Florièges.

The ruins are accessible from Tourtour village by following marked trails that pass through oak and pine forests. The walking path is straightforward to navigate and moves through open countryside.

The abbey kept its 127-hectare estate intact until it was sold as national property in 1789 to a farmer. Abbots of Le Thoronet still came to pray in the chapel at their enthronement, a journey that took them six hours.