Château de Grimaud, Castle ruin in Grimaud, France

Château de Grimaud is a castle ruin positioned on a hilltop overlooking the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, with partially preserved walls and towers. The remains display medieval construction, with stone structures scattered across the site that reflect different periods of building and renovation.

The castle is documented from the 11th century as the seat of the lords of Freinet, a fief of the counts of Provence. Around 1246 it passed to the Pontevès family and was raised to a barony; in 1441 René I of Anjou granted it to Jean de Cossa, who converted a tower's ground floor into an 85 m³ cistern. In 1645 Marie Allard sold it to François de Castellane, whose family added the two round towers. Confiscated around 1791, it was used as a stone quarry and became a ruin.

Since 2001 the site has hosted public events, including the summer concerts of the Festival des Grimaldines. An amphitheatre-like area in the south-east of the walled grounds serves these performances. The castle belongs to the Count of Senard, who made it available to the municipality for cultural use.

The ruins stand on a rocky outcrop above Grimaud and are open to visitors free of charge throughout the year. The site is reached on foot, and the ground inside the walls is uneven, so sturdy shoes help. Two of the three stepped ring walls survive, the outer one up to seven metres high. The site is lit by floodlights at night.

The castle's keep once held a blind room at its base that was converted into a cistern holding 85 cubic metres of water. Renaissance cross-mullioned windows survive in the walls, their frames cut from green serpentine stone in the 15th century, as are the cornices of the corner towers.