Île Sainte-Marguerite

The Île Sainte-Marguerite (pronounced [il sɛ̃t maʁɡ(ə)ʁit]) is the largest of the Lérins Islands, about half a mile off shore from the French Riviera town of Cannes.

Besides the Man in the Iron Mask, a mysterious prisoner whose identity remains unknown, Abd al-Qadir al-Jaza'iri (an Algerian rebel leader), Marquis Jouffroy d’Abbans (inventor of the steamboat) and Marshal Bazaine (the only successful escapee from the island) have all spent time there.

A fifteen-minute boat ride from Cannes, the Île de Sainte-Marguerite is low in profile and heavily wooded with umbrella pines and eucalyptus.

Both islands (with the Île Saint-Honorat) are looked after by the Office national des forêts, and are a popular tourist attraction of natural interest.

The historic Fort Royal now houses a youth hostel and a Museum of the Sea, featuring items recovered from ancient Roman and Saracen shipwrecks.

View of the north side of the island, including the Fort Royal and the village of Sainte-Marguerite.
Location of Sainte-Marguerite within Lérins islands
Museum of the sea & prison of the iron mask