Roquebrune-Cap-Martin

Roquebrune- Cap- Martin is a commune with 12,450 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2011 ), which is located on the French Riviera between Monaco and Menton.

Geography

Roquebrune- Cap- Martin is located on the French Côte d' Azur in the foothills of the French Alps. The actual village is located at an altitude of 225 m, against a mountain backdrop, which is dominated by Mont Agel. Part of the city boundary is also the state border with the Principality of Monaco. Just as in neighboring Menton, the local dialect is Monegasque.

History

Roquebrune was founded in 970 by the Count of Ventimiglia, Conrad I. to protect the western border of its territory to the single connection to the west ( the ancient Roman Via Julia Augusta). His original name was Rocca Bruna (on Mentonnais: Roucabruna ), which means " brown rock ". The population was, as in neighboring Monaco, originally Ligurian, even if over time increasingly Occitan -speaking immigrants to the local dialect influenced ( a variant of mentonasque ) and mixed.

At this time the fortress surrounded the whole settlement. In 1355 the family sold the Vento Roquebrune, and the place was for five centuries owned by the Grimaldi family. During this time, the fortifications were extended. In 1793, Roquebrune was French. 1804 was built (now the Moyenne Corniche ) under Napoleon I. a new coastal road further. 1814 came back in Roquebrune Monaco possession. On March 21, 1848, proclaimed Roquebrune and Menton the independent Republic of the Free Cities of Menton and Roquebrune, and put themselves under the protection of the King of Sardinia. With Sardinia they arrived in 1859 reunited Italy. The first Italian King Victor Emanuel I. on suitable 1860, the County of Nice, along with Savoy finally the French State ( which was approved by the people of Nice in a plebiscite with around 25,000 to just about 200 votes). 1861 also declined the Monegasque Prince Charles III. in an agreement with Napoleon III. for four million francs on his claims to Roquebrune and Menton.

The Cap- Martin, on which an early church there was, at first sparsely populated, but was first mentioned in the 11th century. It first belonged to the eastern Menton, the border city of Italy.

From the mid 19th century, was also this part of the coast as a holiday home a magnet for celebrities with establishment of the railway Marseille- Ventimiglia. Elisabeth of Austria spent at the Hôtel du Cap Martin several months of their last years of life. Eugenie, widow of Napoleon III. , Had a villa here. In the 20th century, Le Corbusier built a Cabanon, a minimalist architectural design. Coco Chanel bought the Villa La Pausa in which, inter alia, Winston Churchill was a regular guest. Today, among others, the Belgian royal family owns a villa on Cap Martin.

The change of the name of Roquebrune Roquebrune -Cap- Martin reflected the increasing urbanization of the Côte d' Azur in the 20th century.

Attractions

Place des Deux Frères

Rue de la Fontaine

Entrance to the church

Interior of the church

Millennial Olive Tree

Monte Carlo Beach Hotel and Villa La Vigie

Roquebrune under palm trees

• The castle of Roquebrune-Cap -Martin was built at the end of the 10th century by Conrad I. Count of Ventimiglia. Your Donjon is probably the oldest in France.
• The Olivier millénaire ( millennial olive tree ), probably one of the oldest olive trees in the world
• The church from the 12th century, rebuilt several times and restored, most recently in the 19th century

Twinning

Twin towns of Roquebrune -Cap- Martin are Profondeville Belgium's Walloon region and Vejle in Denmark.

Sons and daughters of the town

• Gilles Panizzi (born 1965 ), French rally driver