Monastère orthodoxe Sainte-Marie, Military fort on Porquerolles Island, France

The Monastery of Sainte-Marie occupies the Fort de la Repentance, a 19th-century fort on Porquerolles Island. Its walls are built of rough grey, brown and greenish stone blocks; a large facade holds an arched recess outlined in cut stone, with two cross-shaped openings in reddish brick. A low dark archway opens at the base, and a long stone-and-brick wall with four round arches stands near a wooden footbridge.

The fortress was built starting in 1882 under Captain Marinier's direction to defend Porquerolles Bay and the Port-Cros islands. In the 20th century, the installation shifted from military use to Orthodox monastic purpose and gained historic monument protection status in 1989.

The Romanian Orthodox community of the Jean Cassien parish in Aix-en-Provence took over the fort and made it the monastery of Sainte-Marie du Désert, succeeding Father Séraphin with Father Vasile, who led the restoration work. The monks live among the former gun batteries, and the masonry of the north and centre batteries now frames monastic worship.

The monastery sits on Porquerolles Island, accessible by ferry from Hyères. The courtyard and casemates can be explored on foot, though visitors should expect uneven surfaces and narrow passages within the structure.

The fort's name, Repentance, predates the monastery and comes from the land cleared and levelled from 1880. The monastic community that took over the site is Romanian Orthodox, from the Jean Cassien parish of Aix-en-Provence, represented by Father Vasile, successor to Father Seraphin. The monastery is now called Sainte-Marie du Désert.