History of Aix-en-Provence

Aix (Provençal Ais), the former capital of Provence, lies barely 30km/19mi north of Marseilles in a fertile plain surrounded by mountains. Four old palaces, dating mainly from the 17th and 18th centuries, and many fine churches and museums bear witness to the town's glittering past. As the home of a famous university and

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After serious setbacks, caused by migrations and attacks by the Saracens, Aix became the capital of the county of Provence and also, especially in the time of the art-lover René of Anjou (1409-80), a cultural center of Provençal poetry. In 1409 the university was founded, and in 1481 the town passed to France. It was badly affected in the Wars of Religion. From 1630 there were violent clashes with Richelieu and Mazarin which could be settled only by the good offices of Michel, the brother of Mazarin and Archbishop of Aix.

The broad Cours Mirabeau, laid out in 1651, borders the Old Town of Aix-en-Provence in the south, separating it from the newer parts. This idyllic shady promenade is planted with old plane trees (which, however, are regularly and heavily pruned); in the middle of the roadway stand three beautiful fountains, the center one of which, the "Fontaine Chaude", is fed with warm spring water, and in the Place du Général de Gaulle, which forms the western boundary of the line of streets, stands the great Fontaine de la Rotonde. There are several impressive buildings in the street, among them the Hôtel des Villiers (No. 2; 1710), the Hôtel d'Isouard de Vauvenargues (No. 10; 1710), the Hôtel d'Arbod Jouques (No. 19; early 18th C.), the Hôtel de Forbin (No. 20; 1656) and the Hôtel de Maurel de Pontèves (No. 38; 1647-50; now the offices of the Principal of the University). At the east end of the Cours Mirabeau stands the Fontaine du Roi René, the work of David d'Angers (19th C.) and the Chapelle des Oblats, part of the Carmelite Monastery designed by a pupil of Puget and restored about 1700. The "Deux Garçons" cafe dates from the 18th C.

The Vasarély Foundation lies in Avenue Marcel Pagnol, in the Jas de Bouffan district in the west of Aix-en-Provence. In this modern and unconventionally styled building, some 87m/286ft in length, visitors can see 42 huge wall-paintings - "integrations murales" - as well as some 800 studies by the Hungaro-French artist Victor Vasarély (b. 1908), the main advocate of the Abstract Constructivist school of painting and of Op Art.

The Musée Granet in Aix-en-Provence in the Place St-Jean-de-Malte, east of the Fontaine des Quatre Dauphins, is one of the most comprehensive museums in Provence. It is housed in the former palace of the Commandant of the Order of Malta (Palais de Malte), dating from 1671. Most of the exhibits were formerly the property of the collector and painter François Marius Granet (1775-1849); they include Celto-Ligurian sculptures from the Oppidum d'Entremont, Greek reliefs, Roman fragments, an Early Christian sarcophagus, medieval sculpture and works by European painters (including Jost van Cleve, Hans Holbein the Younger, Rubens, Rembrandt, Cézanne and Pissarro).

The archeological site of the Celto-Ligurian settlement of Oppidum d'Entremont lies some 3km/2mi north of Aix, off the D14 road. This settlement, which composed of an Upper and a Lower Town, was strategically placed on high ground. About 4ha/10acres have been uncovered, and pieces of broken pillars enable one to discern the outlines of some individual buildings and parts of the settlement. A mosaic floor and remains of what were apparently charnel-houses are all that is left of a sanctuary on the hill, destroyed in 123 B.C.

In Aix-en-Provence, in Rue J. De la Roque, in the north of the Old Town, stands the Cathédrale St-Sauveur (St Savior's Cathedral). It was built in various stages from the 12th to 17th century, and dedicated in 1534.