Chateau d’If was a former prison Chateau d’If is a former prison on an island at the entrance to Le Vieux Port in the Bay of Marseille. La construction du château se t… Chateau d’If was a notorious prison in its own right but it became world famous with the publication of Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo in 1844. The castle was made famous when Alexandre Dumas père, the 19th-century French writer, used it as one of the settings in his novel The Count of Monte Cristo… Their etchings on the bricks can still be seen today.But perhaps the castle is most well-known for its literary role in Dumas’ classic, It’s still a hugely popular book, discussing how life can change for the worse at a moment’s notice: “On what slender threads do life and fortune hang!” In real life, no one is ever known to have successfully escaped from the prison.Take the time to visit both Château d’If and the neighbouring island of How to get there: Ferries leave from the Old Port in Marseille to the island of Frioul, stopping at Château d’If on the way. The closest that it came to a genuine test of strength was in July 1531, when This might have been fortunate, given the weaknesses identified by military engineer The isolated location and dangerous offshore currents of the Château d'If made it an ideal escape-proof The island became internationally famous in the 19th century when As was common practice in those days, prisoners were treated differently according to their class and wealth. Chateau d’If Prison.
It is famous for being one of the settings of Alexandre Dumas’ adventure novel, The Count of Monte Cristo. The Château d'If is a fortress located on the island of If, the smallest island in the Frioul archipelago situated in the Mediterranean Sea about 1.5 kilometres offshore in the Bay of Marseille in southeastern France. 3,500 French Protestants were put in prison here, as well as several political prisoners. Not all the ferries stop at the fortress so make sure you Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm (6pm from April to October). De l’île d’If, il étudie les défenses de la ville et constate que rien ne la protège contre les invasions. The island of If is a very small island – only three hectares in size. It was demilitarized and opened to the public on 23 September 1890. Its fame comes from the setting for Dumas' novel, It has three storeys, built in the shape of a square (28 metres long) protected by towers, with cover for archers and guns.It looks imposing and acted as a deterrent, but it never actually had to play a part in defending Marseille against a military attack – which is probably a good thing.
It was made legendary by Alexandre Dumas in his classic novel, The Count of Monte Cristo. It was an ideal place to use as a prison though, primarily because of the fact it was an island and difficult to escape from.
The fort wasn’t well-designed; it was built with a lot of mistakes and might have been easy to capture and/or destroy.A post shared by Stéphane Guillot (@stephaneguillot) on By the 1800s, it was clear that there wasn’t a military role for the fortress to play in defending France. It’s part of a small archipelago that includes the larger island of Frioul, which is a wonderful nature reserve and home to a little fishing community.The fortress is the only thing that has ever been built on the island of If.
It is famous for being one of the settings of Alexandre Dumas' adventure novel The Count of Monte Cristo. History of the monument A crucial fortress. It can be reached by boat from Marseille's old port. In keeping with the time, poorer prisoners were kept in the worst conditions – in dungeons on the lower floor, full of people, hunger and disease – whilst the richer prisoners were allowed to pay for better cells on the upper floors, complete with fireplaces and proper beds. Built on a small 30.000 square meters island in the Bay of Marseille, this fortified fortress with walls guarding every inch of its coast represented perfect place for prison. There are fast currents that run through the surrounding waters, which acted as a deterrent, very similar to the island prison of Throughout the 1800s, until the prison’s closure in 1890, thousands of political prisoners were housed here. However, the wealthiest inmates were able to pay for their own private cells (or The château's use as a prison ceased at the end of the 19th century. En 1516, François Ier, roi de France, s’arrête à Marseille après la victoire de Marignan. Here’s our guide to the history behind this amazing monument, how to get there and what to do. Closed Mondays.Château d’If is an old island prison off the coast of The imposing fortress of Château d'If sits just off the coast of Marseille | © Darius Huntly/FlickrChâteau d'If seen from the island of Frioul with Marseille in the background
King Francis visited the island in 1516 and realised that it was an ideal place to build a fort to protect Construction began in 1524 and finished in 1531. Francis I of France wanted the Château d’If to fulfil three functions: protect the coast from invasion; provide cover for the new royal fleet of galleys, and keep watch over Marseille, annexed to France in 1480. Other articles where Château d′If is discussed: If: Its castle, built by the French king Francis I in 1524, was later used as a state prison. It’s where his hero was wrongly imprisoned for years. It’s the tale of sailor Edmond Dantès who was wrongly accused of treason and spent 14 years at Chateau d’If …
A château is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. The poorest were placed at the bottom, being confined perhaps twenty or more to a cell in windowless dungeons under the castle.