Provence Area Guide

Provence in south-eastern France extends from the lower Rhône River in the west to the Italian border in the east, and from the Mediterranean in the south to the mountains in the north. Today it mostly falls within the administrative region known as Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

The coastline has some of the earliest known sites of human habitation in Europe. Primitive stone tools dated to over 1 million years BC were found in the Grotte du Vallonnet near Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, and more sophisticated tools, dating to 600,000 BC were found in the Cave d’Escale at Saint Estėve-Janson. More tools from 400,000 BC and some of the first fireplaces in Europe were found at Terra Amata in Nice.

The region’s later history includes the Ligures and the Celts around the 10^th century BC, the Greeks from the 7^th century BC, and the Romans who occupied it from the 2^nd century BC for 700 years until the 5^th Century AD. It became the first Roman province beyond the Alps in fact, and they called it Provincia Romana, hence its present-day name.

Christianity arrived in Provincia Romana between the 3^rd and 6^th centuries, and the Germanic invasions into what was the Holy Roman Empire spanned the period from the 6^th to the 9^th centuries.

Various dynasties of Counts then ruled the region from their Capital in Aix en Provence during the Middle Ages, and in an alternative and deadly challenge to Rome, the corrupt Popes of Avignon controlled the Catholic Church in Provence with a vice-like grip in the period around the 13^th century.

The Middle Ages were extremely hard on the people of the region who also had to endure such horrors as the Black Death which reduced the population by a half, and the Hundred Years War (which actually lasted for 116 years and across five generations of kings).

The rule of the Counts of Provence ended in 1481, when it became a province of the Kings of France, but to this day the region retains a proud and distinct cultural and linguistic identity.

Provence Today

Today the area is remarkable for the numerous and well-preserved remains from the Roman occupation. Arenas, baths, forums, temples, and theatres, some of the best preserved in the world, can still be seen all over Provence.

For visitors, there is such incredibly rich history, but there is also one of the most alluring and beautiful coastlines in the world, with mountains, rivers, the deepest and most beautiful canyons in Europe, and hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of natural forest reserves.

Add to that a quality of life and a climate renowned and recognised around the world – 300 days of sunshine, world class wines and gastronomy, and the absolute freedom to enjoy it all.

Put together these qualities make Provence and the Cote d’Azur the most sought-after destination for holidays, for second homes and for primary living that exist anywhere in today’s world. It is a trend that began long before but gathered momentum with the arrival of the railway in the latter half of the 19^th Century. With easier access and travel, and the popularity the region quickly acquired especially with the Victorian English and the Russian aristocracy, Provence “took off”.

Today Provence is the jewel of France, and very few doubt it.