I. Ancient and Medieval History Some of the very first signs of human habitation go back to the Bronze Age (circa 400,000 BC) as confirmed by bones and tools found in cave complex near the Nice harbor. In the 6th-4th Century BC the Greeks set up a trading centre at Nikaia (Nice) in honor of Nike, the goddess of Victory, and subsequently, Antibes, called Antipolis, meaning “the city opposite” (to Nice), and later established settlements at Hyeres, St-Tropez and Monaco. The Roman occupation began in 125 BC and there is considerable evidence to be seen today. Although their primary intentions were military, the Romans can in a sense be regarded as the first visitors to appreciate the pleasures of the coast, building themselves luxurious villas on the shore of St. Raphael, near top their headquarters at Frejus. One of the most magnificent sights in the entire region is the Trophee des Alpes at La Turbie, which still towers over the landscape today, dwarfing the little village below, and providing an enduring emblem of the power and self-confidence of the Romans. On the base of the monument, a long inscription lists all the subjugated tribes of the region. The Via Aurelia, the main Roman road from Rome to Arles, passed through Menton, La Turbie and Cimiez (Northern Nice), part of the route following what is now the Grand Corniche. La Turbie was the highest point of the road and a landmark visible for miles. What is today a charming backwater of a village was then an important staging-post, bustling with merchants, centurions, slaves and gossip from Rome. The Romans founded substantial towns throughout Provence including Narbonne, Arles, Nimes and Frejus. Everywhere they built arenas, baths and temples of which substantial ruins still remain today. In some cases entire towns like Cimiez have been excavated. In Frejus, the amphitheater and arena is one of the largest built in Gaul by the Romans. The cathedral in Vence was built on the site of a Roman temple. Vallauris was founded by the Romans and was famous for its pottery even then. But the most famous and enduring gifts that the Romans bestowed on the area which all the visitors can appreciate today are: the Wine, the Olive and the Lavender. With the fall of the Roman Empire, the order was replaced by chaos and Goths, Vandals, Lombards and Saracens ravaged the area. By 800s the invading Saracens had taken power in Eze, La Turbie and Ste-Agnes and by the 10th century occupied nearly all coast. Finally in 980, a concerted effort was made to drive them out by the Count of Provence, Guillaume le Liberateur, who numbered among his soldiers a Genoese named Gibeellino Grimaldi, the first mention in the region of a Grimaldi, the name of Monaco’s ruling house today. Neither France nor Italy was united in the way we know them today. Instead, both were divided into warring fiefdoms, with towns, constantly in war with each other. Pisa at war with Genoa, and Genoa at war with Nice. From the 14th century, Nice and the surrounding region were under the protection of Savoy and did not elect to become part of France until 1860. The Italian influence is apparent everywhere, in architecture, place names and the Nicoise dialect. II. 19th Century – The British Invasion By the 1830s, the days of corsairs and pirates were over and the civilized world, could travel freely by carriage to the Riviera, stopping at inns along the way. During the days of the Grand Tour, France was considered a mere antechamber to classical Rome. But in the 1850’s, particularly with the arrival of the railway, the South of France replaced Italy as the British home away from home. Queen Victoria, travelling incognito as the Comtesse de Balmoral, arrived in the royal train hung with silk and decorated with Louis XVI furnishings. In the mornings, the train was halted to allow the Queen an hour to dress and her male staff to shave. From 1882 onwards she was a regular winter visitor. Health was the Queen’s motive for visiting the Riviera since her son, Prince Leopold. Suffered from consumption. Until the 1870s, consumption was the killer disease in Victorian Britain. The only remedy was believed to be a warm climate. Queen Victoria wintered in Hyeres before finding a more desirable address in Nice, the palatial Hotel Regina in the Cimiez district, where she entertained the Emperor Franz Josef and other European royals. Queen Victoria’s son, the future Edward VII, preferred Cannes and under his patronage, the sleepy village of Cannes became one of the Riviera’s most British resorts and was home to over 1000 English residents by 1860s. II. 19th Century – The Russian Invasion Before World War I, the Russian community was second only to the British in size and influence. In 1856, Alexandra Fedorovna, the widow of Tsar Nicholas I, bought Villa Acquaviva on the Promenade des Anglais and forged the early Russian links with Nice. French was the language of the Russian court and the Riviera made a restful second home, a welcome change from Russian winters and rebellious serfs. Alexandra’s son, the Grand Duke Constantine, followed in his mother’s footsteps and bought Villa Lavit, also on the Promenade des Anglais. The seafront and the Boulevard Tzarewich soon became distinctive Russian colonies, set at a safe distance from the English camp in Cimiez. The Russians congregated in the Ferme Russe, Russian tea rooms run by the formidable Madame Chirikov. The opening of the railway to Nice in 1864 had an immediate impact. Tsar Alexander II arrived within a week later and was soon enthralled enough to consider building a Russian Orthodox Church in Nice (which still is an active church today). In 1880, Grand Duchess Anastasia, Tsar Nicholas II’s aunt, founded the Association Orthodoxe Russe which looked after the consumptive soldiers and students. After the revolution, the home became known as the Maison Russe and, linked to the Russian Red Cross, still welcomes Russian émigrés. The Russian women had a particularly high social profile on the Riviera. One grande dame was the Princess Kotschouby whose opulent belle-epoque villa is now the Cheret Museum in Nice. The Princess Caramachimay abandoned her troublesome Russian estates and emigrated to Cap Martin at the turn of the 20th century. Princess Anna Chervachidze settled on a grand estate nearby; it later sheltered a skulking Greta Garbo and is now owned by a Lebanese millionaire. II. 19th Century - Others “Princes, princes, nothing but princes. If you like them, you’re in the right place,” complained Guy de Maupassant of Cannes in 1884. The royals were headed by Queen of England Victoria, the Empress of Russia Alexandra Fedorovna, and the German Emperor Frederick. At the turn of the 20th century, Menton alone received the Kings of Italy, Sweden, Saxe, Belgium, and Bulgaria, as well as visits by Count Pushkin and Russian Grand Dukes. Sometimes the royals literally crossed paths; while on a carriage drive near Villefranche, Queen Victoria passed King Leopold, out on his regular stroll. In the same year, the young Aga Khan III, arrived on a steamer from India and found Queen Victoria in Nice and the Emperor Franz Josef in Cap Martin. In addition, there were ‘ a score of Russian Grand Dukes and Austrian Archdukes in their villas and palaces, half the English peerage, and most of the Almanac de Gotha from Germany., the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Balkan countries…” As the Aga Khan modestly put it: “ The young man from Bombay was dazzled and awed.” III. 20th Century and today There was a distinct change of climate after the World War I. Most Royals were in financial straits, and most Russians were exiled or killed. Only the newly rich Americans had the means to live out their fantasies. The simple yet sophisticated pleasures of the Mediterranean appealed to jaded American dollar kings. With the glamorous new arrivals, winter was banished and the summer season launched. But amidst the wanton partying, creativity flourished, as Colette, Scott Fitzgerald, Somerset Maugham, Katherine Mansfield and Blasco Ibanez were writing on different patches of Riviera. Sergei Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes settled in Monte-Carlo and were performing to the music of Debussy and Stravinsky the pieces that were composed specifically for the Ballets Russes. The troupe, starring Pavlova and Nijinsky, danced to such modern classics as ‘L’Apres-midi d’un Faune’ and ‘The Firebird”. As if this was not enough, the costumes and sets were designed by Picasso and Matisse, Utrillo and De Chirico, George Braque and Andre Derain. World War II drew curtain on most of the glamour but the Riviera has proved eternally irresistible to Hollywood stars. The Hotel du Cap-Ede Roc that sits on the tip of the Cap d’Antibes has long been a mecca for the movie-star set. A new wave brought such stars as Clark Gable, Humphrey Bogart and Rita Hayworth. At different times, John Wayne and Charlie Chaplin were entertained by the hotel’s private funicular to the beach. While indulging in cocktails and caviar, John F. Kennedy admired the exotic gardens from the gigantic terrace. The Cote d’Azur continues to attract the rich and famous who rent or own villas on Cap Ferrat or Cap d’Antibes. Rock stars and supermodels still flock to St. Tropez., to dine at the beach clubs or sip cocktails on quayside yachts. The grand hotels retain their legendary status and helicopters, private planes and limousines still provide luxury transport for the privileged percentage to keep the dream of the glamour days alive for everyone else.
