Marseille's unusual : the Plague Wall
Between 1720 and 1722, Marseille and a large part of Provence were struck by the devastating "Great Plague". This sanitary catastrophe led to the construction of a 27-kilometer-long wall in the Monts de Vaucluse to protect the Comtat Venaissin.
The disease was brought by the ship Le Grand Saint Antoine in May 1720. Despite a suspicious death reported by the captain on the ship, the shipowner, Échevin Estelle, was primarily interested in unloading his cargo and planned to sell his silks at the Beaucaire Fair scheduled for July 20. The plague epidemic was officially declared 67 days after the arrival of Le Grand Saint Antoine.
PROTECTING THROUGH A STONE WALL
Despite restrictions on movement, the kingdom failed to contain the spread of the plague. In 1721, the territories of Avignon and Comtat Venaissin decided to protect themselves by constructing a sanitary line marked by a dry stone wall between the Durance River and Mont Ventoux. The wall was guarded day and night by French and papal troops (Avignon and Comtat Venaissin territories being papal at that time).
The Great Plague caused 126,000 deaths in Provence, including 50,000 deaths in Marseille, which was half of Marseille's population in 1722.