ClasséArchaeological site · protected 1840Arc antiquePhoto: Xavier D'ABRIGEON · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Maison médiévale, dite Maison romane · Photo: Marianne Casamance · CC BY-SA 3.016historic monuments
History of Orange · Monuments historiques
16 historic monuments, the oldest from Antiquity
Part of the town has been a protected historic area, a site patrimonial remarquable, since 2023. The Culture ministry lists 16 historic monuments in Orange: 9 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 7 inscrit (the second level). That’s 5.4 for every 10,000 residents, more per resident than 71% of compared French towns; the median compared French town has 2.5. We have photos of 16 of them.
Monuments historiques
16
5.4 per 10,000 residents
median compared town 2.5
median compared town 2.5
Classé
9
the highest protection
Inscrit
7
the second level
Oldest part
Antiquity
of any listed monument
Homes before 1919
9.6%
median compared town 7.4%
In pictures
Orange in 16 photos
Nearly every classé monument, photographed. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Rempart romainClassé
Colline Saint-EutropeClassé
Arc antiqueClassé
Amphithéâtre (temple dans un hémicycle précédé d'un nymphée)Classé
Fontaine publiqueClassé+11See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its license; names open the monument’s page.
How old
How old Orange’s monuments are
Each monument once, by the oldest part the list dates.
Prehistory & Antiquity to the 4th c.4
Middle Ages 5th–15th c.3
16th to 18th century Renaissance to Revolution2
19th century 1801–19001
20th century and later since 19010
7 of 10 dated monuments have parts from before 1500. The oldest dated: Arc antique (Antiquity). 6 monuments have no date on the list.
Map
Where Orange’s monuments stand
Every monument with a point on the ministry’s list; the larger, darker dots are classé.
ClasséInscritWithin 400 m of Église Notre-Dame-de-Nazareth (ancienne cathédrale)
6 of 9classé monuments stand within 400 m of Église Notre-Dame-de-Nazareth (ancienne cathédrale), with 12 of the town’s 16 monuments.
Tap a dot to open the monument’s page: its record, photo and the monuments around it.
16 monuments by protection
9 Classé7 Inscrit
Classé is the higher protection: any work on the building needs the State’s permission. Work on an inscrit building must be declared to the State in advance. Around both, building work in sight of the monument (usually within 500 m) needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
Points as the ministry gives them: a monument spread over several plots has one point. 1 monument has no point on the map.
Classé
9 classé monuments in Orange
Classé is France’s highest protection for a building, held by about a third of the monuments on the list. 4 of the 9 are protected in part only (a façade, a roof, a room). Each card opens the monument’s page.
ClasséArchaeological site · protected 1840Colline Saint-EutropePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Jeanlouiszimmermann · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséArchaeological site · protected 1920Forum romain autrefois identifié comme Gymnase romainPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Szeder László · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséTown walls · protected 1935Rempart romainPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Marianne Casamance · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséCathedral · protected 1921Église Notre-Dame-de-Nazareth (ancienne cathédrale)Photo: H2k4 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséHouse · protected 1991Maison médiévale, dite Maison romanePhoto: Marianne Casamance · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséFountain · protected 1920Fontaine publiquePhoto: Jeanlouiszimmermann · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséMonument · protected 1862Amphithéâtre (temple dans un hémicycle précédé d'un nymphée)Photo: Gromelle Grand Angle · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséTown hall · protected 1907Hôtel de villePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Véronique PAGNIER · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Inscrit
7 inscrit monuments in Orange
Inscrit is the second level of protection: the building is worth keeping, and any work on it must be declared.
InscritChurch · protected 2018Église Saint-Florent (ancien couvent des Cordeliers)Photo: Véronique PAGNIER · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Inscrit
InscritTheater · protected 1975Théâtre municipalPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Véronique PAGNIER · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
InscritHospital · protected 1974Centre hospitalierPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Véronique PAGNIER · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritTown house · protected 1984Hôtel de JoncPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Marianne Casamance · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritTown house · protected 1975Hôtel Monier-Vinard (ancien)Part of the building is protectedPhoto: JLZIMMERMANN · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritHouse · protected 1931Maison, 4 rue de TourrePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Marianne Casamance · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
What’s protected
Houses and homes are the largest group in Orange
Each monument under the main domain Mérimée gives it.
Houses & homes5
Religious buildings2
Public & civic2
Tombs & cemeteries1
Bridges & engineering1
Houses & homes: 5 of 16 monuments (31%). 2 are religious buildings, 1 of them classé.
Mérimée files each monument under one main domain: a château with its chapel counts once. 5 have no domain on the list.
Protected area
Orange has had a protected historic area since 2023
Sites patrimoniaux remarquables on the Culture ministry’s list, with the plan in force.
| Area | Created as | Plan in force |
|---|---|---|
| SPR93-50 | – March 15, 2023 | – |
A site patrimonial remarquable protects a whole area rather than one building: inside it, building work follows the area’s own plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
The list gives no boundaries, so the map can’t show the area.
When protected
Orange’s list has grown since 1840
Monuments by the year they were first protected.
1840186018801900192019401960198020002020
First protected, in 1840: Arc antique and Colline Saint-Eutrope. That was France’s first list of monuments historiques, drawn up in Prosper Mérimée’s time as inspector. 1 has been added since 2011.
Born before 1900
16 people born in Orange before 1900
Their lives on one line.
Jacques Pineton de Chambrun
Jacques de Jullien
François de Langes de Lubières
Jean-Baptiste Pierre Dumas
Thomas-Augustin de Gasparin
Godefroy Bouvier
Pierre Dugat
Jean-Jacques Meynard
Augustin de Gasparin
Jean-Baptiste Millet
Henri Monier
Paul de Gasparin
Henri Nogent-Saint-Laurens
Camille du Locle
Auguste Lacour
Marius Roux-Renard
1500165018001950
TA
Thomas-Augustin de Gasparin1754–1793 · French politician
CL
Camille du Locle1832–1903 · French theatre director
JP
Jacques Pineton de Chambrun1515–1601
JJ
Jacques de Jullien1660–1711 · French general
FL
François de Langes de Lubières1664–1720
JB
Jean-Baptiste Pierre Dumas1727–1796 · French politician
GB
Godefroy Bouvier1760–1826 · French politician
PD
Pierre Dugat1760– · French politician
Everyone born in Orange Birthplaces from Wikidata, checked against Wikipedia.
Towns its size
Orange has the 8th most monuments of 41 towns its size
Compared French towns of 28,500 to 31,200 residents, by historic monuments.
Neighbors
Historic monuments in the towns around Orange
| Town | Residents | Monuments | Classé | Protected area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orange | 29,706 | 16 | 9 | Yes |
| Camaret-sur-Aigues | 4,533 | 2 | 0 | — |
| Piolenc | 5,718 | 2 | 0 | — |
| Sérignan-du-Comtat | 2,939 | 3 | 2 | — |
| Jonquières | 5,201 | 1 | 0 | — |
| Courthézon | 6,426 | 5 | 1 | — |
| Mornas | 2,569 | 3 | 1 | — |
In brief
Orange in brief
Arc antique, from Antiquity, is the oldest monument in Orange. In all there are 16 historic monuments, 9 of them classé, including Maison médiévale, dite Maison romane. Amphithéâtre (temple dans un hémicycle précédé d'un nymphée) and other monuments here are part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Only 7 of the 41 towns nearest its size have more historic monuments.
Part of it has been a site patrimonial remarquable since 2023. Of the 16 people born here before 1900, the best known include Thomas-Augustin de Gasparin (1754), Camille du Locle (1832) and Jacques Pineton de Chambrun (1515). Beyond that, per resident it sits near the middle of compared French towns; and 9.6% of its homes were built before 1919, close to the 7.4% in the median compared French town.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Monuments historiques. France protects buildings at two levels. Classé, the higher (about a third of the list), means any work needs the State’s permission; inscrit means work must be declared to the State in advance. The Culture ministry’s Mérimée base lists every protected building, and this page counts them.
- Partly protected. Many entries protect part of a building only (its façades and roofs, a staircase, a painted room). Each counts as one monument, like a fully protected one.
- Where a monument is counted. In the commune named on its protection, moved to today’s commune where communes have since merged. A monument listed for several communes counts in each.
- Sites patrimoniaux remarquables. Since 2016 France’s protected historic areas (the former secteurs sauvegardés, ZPPAUP and AVAP) share one name. Inside one, building work follows the area’s plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
- What isn’t here. Protected objects (furniture, organs, paintings), old buildings with no protection, UNESCO World Heritage listings and labels such as “Plus Beaux Villages de France” aren’t on this list, so this page doesn’t count them.
- No History Grade yet. Everything on this page is described, not graded: France’s History Grade isn’t built yet.
Questions about the history of Orange
How many historic monuments are there in Orange?
The Culture ministry lists 16 historic monuments in Orange: 9 classé and 7 inscrit.
Which monuments in Orange are classé?
9, among them Arc antique, Colline Saint-Eutrope, Forum romain autrefois identifié comme Gymnase romain, Rempart romain, Église Notre-Dame-de-Nazareth (ancienne cathédrale) and Maison médiévale, dite Maison romane.
How old are the monuments of Orange?
The oldest parts of its listed monuments date from Antiquity.
Is Orange a protected historic area?
Yes: part of Orange has been a site patrimonial remarquable since 2023.
When were monuments in Orange first protected?
The first in 1840, the latest in 2018.
How old are the homes in Orange?
9.6% of its main homes were built before 1919 (median compared French town: 7.4%).
France has no History Grade yet: this page describes, it doesn’t grade.
Sources: Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée base on POP (immeubles protégés au titre des monuments historiques), October 2026 · Ministère de la Culture, sites patrimoniaux remarquables, October 2026 · INSEE, census 2023 (main homes by build period) · Wikidata and Wikipedia (people born here) · Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata (photos of the monuments, each with its own credit and license) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 4, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.