Built in 1792, it was frequented by the likes of Paul Cézanne, Émile Zola and Ernest Hemingway. Situated on this avenue, which is lined on one side with banks and on the other with cafés, is the Deux Garçons, the most famous brasserie in Aix. The new town extends to the south and west the old town, with its narrow, irregular streets, and its old mansions dating from the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, lies to the north. It follows the line of the old city wall, and divides the town into two sections. The Cours Mirabeau is a wide thoroughfare, planted with double rows of plane trees, bordered by fine houses and decorated by fountains. Like most of the south of France, Aix-en-Provence has a Mediterranean climate ( Köppen Csa).Ĭlimate data for Aix-en-Provence (1981–2010, extremes 1955–present) While it is partially protected from the Mistral, Aix still occasionally experiences the cooler and gusty conditions it brings. It has an average of 300 days of sunshine and only 91 days of rain. It has an average January temperature of 6 ☌ (43 ☏) and a July average of 24 ☌ (75 ☏). Aix's position in the south of France gives it a warm climate, though more extreme than Marseille due to the inland location. The city slopes gently from north to south and the Montagne Sainte-Victoire can easily be seen to the east. Geography and climate Īix-en-Provence is situated in the south of France, in a plain overlooking the Arc river, about 1.5 kilometres (1 mi) from the right bank of the river. A deposit of fossil bones from the Upper Continental Miocene gave rise to a Christian dragon legend. Current archeological excavations in the Ville des Tours, a medieval suburb of Aix, have unearthed the remains of a Roman amphitheatre. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the town was the seat of the Intendance of Provence. Īix passed to the crown of France with the rest of Provence in 1487, and in 1501 Louis XII established there the parliament of Provence, which existed until 1789. Aix, which during the Middle Ages was the capital of Provence, did not reach its zenith until after the 12th century, when, under the houses of Barcelona/Aragon and Anjou, it became an artistic centre and seat of learning. In the succeeding century, the town was repeatedly plundered by the Franks and Lombards, and was occupied by the Saracens in 731 and by Charles Martel in 737. In the 4th century AD it became the metropolis of Narbonensis Secunda. In 102 BC its vicinity was the scene of the Battle of Aquae Sextiae, where the Romans under Gaius Marius defeated the Ambrones and Teutones, with mass suicides among the captured women, which passed into Roman legends of Germanic heroism. Aix ( Aquae Sextiae) was founded in 123 BC by the Roman consul Sextius Calvinus, who gave his name to its springs, following the destruction of the nearby Gallic oppidum at Entremont.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |