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Villefranche-sur-Mer, Alpes-Maritimes (France).

CASTELLANO
Villefranche-sur-Mer está situada en la Costa Azul, entre Niza y Mónaco, a orillas del mar Mediterráneo. La ciudad está ubicada al fondo de la rada de Villefranche, formada por el Cabo de Niza y el Cabo Ferrat.

La rada ya era frecuentada antiguamente por los marinos griegos y romanos. Éstos la hacían servir como fondeadero y la llamaron: Olivula Portus. La rada fue objeto de múltiples ataques bárbaros y sus habitantes abandonaron la orilla del mar para refugiarse en los montes cercanos; allí fundaron otra ciudad a la que llamaron: Montolivo.

En 1295 Carlos II de Anjou, conde de Provenza, se dio cuenta de la importancia estratégica del lugar y estableció, en el mismo, las fronteras de sus dominios. A fin de que los habitantes volvieran a repoblar la rada les otorgó una franquicia contributiva. La ciudad fue bautizada, por ello, como: Villa Franca.

Tras la sedición de Niza, en 1388, Villefranche-sur-Mer pasó a los dominios del Ducado de Saboya. La ciudad pasó a ser, por tanto, el único puerto marítimo del ducado alpino hasta la construcción del puerto de Niza en el siglo XVIII, obteniendo los ingresos de todos los barcos mercantes que llegaban al puerto.

En 1543, tras la ocupación de la rada por la flota franco-turca dirigida por Barbarroja, el duque de Saboya, Manuel Filiberto, ordenó la fortificación de la rada. Asimismo se construyeron, en esa época, el fuerte de Mont Alban y la ciudadela Saint-Elme, su construcción se terminó en 1557 y, por primera vez, se construyó una flota de barcos de guerra en la dársena del puerto.

La ciudad fue víctima de múltiples ocupaciones francesas entre 1720 y 1820 y fue anexionada, definitivamente, a Francia en 1860 junto con los dominios del Condado de Niza.

Lugar de veraneo desde finales del siglo XIX, la rada de Villefranche-sur-Mer, fue el lugar en el que se estableció la 6ª flota de guerra americana durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial entre 1945 y 1962.

Villefranche-sur-Mer es, actualmente, el primer puerto de Francia dedicado a los cruceros de recreo.

En el pasado residieron en Villefranche numerosas personalidades, entre las que se cuentan: Katherine Mansfield, Jean Cocteau y Aldous Huxley. Tina Turner y Bono tienen, en la actualidad, una residencia en la ciudad.

Más info: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villefranche-sur-Mer

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ENGLISH
Villefranche-sur-Mer adjoins the city of Nice to the east along Mont Boron, Mont Alban and Mont Vinaigrier, and 10 km (6.2 mi) south west of Monaco. The bay (rade) of Villefranche is one of the deepest natural harbours of any port in the Mediterranean Sea and provides safe anchorage for large ships, reaching depths of 95 m (320 ft) between the Cape of Nice and Cap Ferrat; it extends to the south to form a 500 m (1700 ft) abyss known as the undersea Canyon of Villefranche at about one nautical mile off the coastline.

The site of what is now Villefranche and surrounding Beaulieu-sur-Mer and Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat has been settled since prehistoric times. Celto-ligurian tribes roamed the area and established farming communities on the surrounding hills. The Greeks and later the Romans used the natural harbour as a stop-over en route to the Greek settlements around the Western Mediterranean. After the conquest of Gaul by Julius Caesar, the Romans built an extension of the Via Aurelia (Aurelian Way), which passed through the settlement of Montolivo.

By the fall of the Carolingian Empire, the area was part of Lotharingia and later part of the County of Provence. In 1295, Charles II, Duke of Anjou, then Count of Provence, enticed the inhabitants of Montolivo and surroundings to settle closer to the coastline in order to secure the area from pirates. By charter, he established Villefranche as a “free port” thus the name, granting tax privileges and port fee rights that lasted well into the 18th century.

By 1388, East Provence became part of the Duchy of Savoy as a result of the disputed succession to the heirless Queen Joan I of Naples. For the next 400 years, the area known as the County of Nice was hotly disputed between the Holy Roman Empire to which Savoy was an ally and the French.

In 1543, the Franco-Turkish armies sacked and occupied the city after the siege of Nice, prompting Duke Emmanuel Philibert to secure the site by building an impressive citadel and a fort on nearby Mont Alban. In the late 17th century, the area fell to the French but was returned to Savoy after the Peace of Utrecht.

During the 18th century, the city lost some of its maritime importance to the new harbour being built in Nice but remained a military and naval base. In 1744, a Franco-Spanish army under the Prince of Conti overran the Piedmontese regiments of Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia at the Fort of Mont Alban in the heights above the town.

In 1793, the French returned to re-occupy Villefranche and the county of Nice remained part of the Napoleonic Empire until 1814. It was returned to the Kingdom of Sardinia by the Congress of Vienna.

In 1860, as a consequence of the Risorgimento, it was given to France by treaty following a plebiscite.
By the late 19th century it had become an important Russian Navy base and the Russians established an oceanographic laboratory in the old lazaret.

The site was also the winter residence for royalties and wealthy visitors.

Villefranche's bay is notable for reaching a significant depth only a short distance from shore. As a result it has become an important port over the years. Since World War I, the United States Navy has called on a regular basis, making Villefranche the home port of the U.S. 6th Fleet from 1948 to 1966. Since the 1980s Villefranche has been used by cruise ships. It is the most visited cruise ship port of call in France.

More info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villefranche-sur-Mer
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La reflexión: www.santimb.com/2012/01/welcome.html

Taken in: France / Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur / Villefranche-sur-Mer (show map)

Taken on: August 18, 2011

Tags:

geo:lat=43.70208289

geo:lon=7.31127262

Villefranche-sur-Mer

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur

Francia

riviera

côte d'azur

costa azul

Tamron

18-200

vacaciones2011

KodakEktachrome100G

agua

water

mar

sea

mediterráneo

mediteranean

barcos

boats

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Sets appears in: • El agua • Lugares more » • Francia « less

Groups appears in: • France • French Riviera - Côte d'Azur more » • Ahhh La France !!! • Cote d'Azur • FRANÇA VISTA PELS CATALANS • french riviera, Nice, Monaco, Saint tropez..... • We love PROVENCE - France « less

Camera: Sony DSLR-A580, f/16.0, 1/60 sec, 28mm (=42mm), ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Sony DSLR-A580
Aperture:	f/16.0
Exposure Time:	0.017 sec (1/60)
Focal Length:	28mm (35mm equivalent: 42mm)
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Aperture-priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	DSLR-A580 v1.11
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