Digne-les-Bains

Digne- les- Bains ( Occitan: Dinha ) is a municipality with 16,886 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2011 ) in southern France. It is the capital (prefecture) of the department of Alpes- de -Haute -Provence and spa town (also called capital of the lavender ). Until 24 June 1988, the city was officially Digne.

The city is the seat of the Diocese of Digne, which has existed since the 4th century. Episcopal church is the Cathedral Saint- Jérome.

Location

Digne- les- Bains is located on the Route Napoléon halfway between Grenoble and Cannes. Scenic fully embedded in a low mountain range, the city extends into a valley on the left and right of the Bléone, the west leads further into the Durance. The community is associated as a place of access to the Regional Natural Park Verdon.

Climate

Because of its wind-protected and fog-free altitude Digne has an excellent climate with some 300 days of sunshine a year.

Demographics

Attractions

See: List of Monuments historiques in Digne- les- Bains

  • Old town
  • Cathedral of St. Jerome ( Cathédrale Saint- Jérôme )
  • Old cathedral in Bourg ( Cathédrale Notre- Dame-du -Bourg ) district
  • Ammonites rocks on the road Barles (Valley of the Bès ) ( Réserve naturelle géologique de Haute -Provence )
  • Historic Fountain in Bourg
  • Cordeliers Garden (Jardin des Cordeliers )
  • Monument of Pierre Gassendi
  • Lourdes Chapel above the town ( Notre -Dame-de -Lourdes )
  • St. Vincent 's Chapel above the town (La chapelle Saint -Vincent )
  • Chapel of the Cross above the town (La chapelle de la Croix )

Traffic

Between Digne- les- Bains and Nice runs the narrow gauge narrow gauge Chemins de Fer de Provence ( CP). The standard gauge railway SNCF to Château- Arnoux -Saint -Auban was shut down in 1989.

Sports

Digne in 2005 and 2008 stage of the Tour de France. Stage winners were David Moncoutié (2005) and Óscar Freire (2008).

Twinning

  • Bad Mergentheim, Baden -Wuerttemberg, Germany, since 1962
  • Borgomanero, Piedmont, Italy, since 2000
  • Douma, Lebanon
  • Kamaishi, Japan

Famous people

Sons and daughters of the town

  • Paul Alexandre Arnoux (1884-1973), writer
  • Jean Daviot (born 1962 ), video artists
  • Alphonse Beau de Rochas (1815-1893), railway engineer and inventor
  • Alain Boghossian (born 1970 ), international footballer
  • Tristan Louis (born 1971 ), journalist
  • Louis Richeome SJ (1544-1625), Christian humanist

Persons with respect to the city

  • Alexandra David- Neel (1868-1969), travel writer, Buddhist nun died in Digne
  • Pierre Gassendi (1592-1655), worked as a teacher of rhetoric about 1608 in Digne

Others

Victor Hugo's famous novel, " Les Misérables " (Les Miserables, 1862) begins in Digne. The " Affaire Dominici ," a filmed with Jean Gabin famous murder case, played near the city and the trial of the alleged killers was held in Digne.

Early 1980s was discovered during roadworks Europe's largest ammonite field. It involves an exposed plate of 350 square meters, on the professionals of 1,500 fossilized mollusks were counted, which are more than 200 million years old. Furthermore, in the Réserve Naturelle Géologique de Haute Provence, a 145,000 -acre conservation area to visit on marked trails fossilized plants and a 185 million years old ichthyosaurs. Also in the set up after the discovery of ammonites plate Musée Promenade, a frescoed villa, you can study and track the evolution of the early Earth's history.

On 28 July 1999, the asteroid ( 10088 ) Digne was named after the city.

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