Aups
Encyclopedia
Aups is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
region
in southeastern France
.
at 500m alt, Aups is in the first foothills of the Alps
. The town is at the gates of Verdon River
, at 60 km from the sea and 80 km from the snow stations.
Aups is named Capital of Haut-Var and Capital of truffle and is integrated in the Parc naturel régional du Verdon since 2000. Its typically Mediterranean climate makes the village a healthy place to live.
, near of Via Aurelia
going from Fréjus
(Forum Julii) to Riez
(Forum Reii). Julius Caesar
has visited Aups (Castrum de Alpibus) on the way of the conquest of Gaul
and has said « I prefer to be the first in Aups than to be the second in Roma ».
The town has been looted by the Huguenot
s in 1574. They massacred 18 Aupsois. A "Maiden of the massacre" was erected on the torture place, in the Clock street.
Aups was the centre of the Var Republican insurgency in 1851 against the coup d'état
of Napoleon III. On December 10, the village was engaged in a real man hunt. Its nickname became The red Center Var.
Aups was a high place of French resistance
during World War II. The city earned the Croix de guerre avec palmes
.
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur or PACA is one of the 27 regions of France.It is made up of:* the former French province of Provence* the former papal territory of Avignon, known as Comtat Venaissin...
region
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...
in southeastern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Geography
Located in ProvenceProvence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
at 500m alt, Aups is in the first foothills of the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
. The town is at the gates of Verdon River
Verdon River
The Verdon is a 166 km long river in south-eastern France, left tributary of the Durance. Its source is at an altitude of 2819 m, in the south-western Alps , between the col d'Allos and the Trois Eveches mountain, south of Barcelonnette...
, at 60 km from the sea and 80 km from the snow stations.
Aups is named Capital of Haut-Var and Capital of truffle and is integrated in the Parc naturel régional du Verdon since 2000. Its typically Mediterranean climate makes the village a healthy place to live.
History
The village was named Oppidum de Alpibus then Castrum de Alpibus, castrum de Almis, then Alps and now Aups. The place was colonized by the Oxybians during the Ancient RomeAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, near of Via Aurelia
Via Aurelia
The Via Aurelia was a Roman road in Italy constructed around the year 241 BC. The project was undertaken by C. Aurelius Cotta, who at that time was censor...
going from Fréjus
Fréjus
Fréjus is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.It neighbours Saint-Raphaël, effectively forming one town...
(Forum Julii) to Riez
Riez
Riez is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France.-Geography:The densely-built village sits where two small rivers join—the Auvestre and the Colostre—in a glacially-widened valley.-Population:-Economy:...
(Forum Reii). Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
has visited Aups (Castrum de Alpibus) on the way of the conquest of Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
and has said « I prefer to be the first in Aups than to be the second in Roma ».
The town has been looted by the Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
s in 1574. They massacred 18 Aupsois. A "Maiden of the massacre" was erected on the torture place, in the Clock street.
Aups was the centre of the Var Republican insurgency in 1851 against the coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
of Napoleon III. On December 10, the village was engaged in a real man hunt. Its nickname became The red Center Var.
Aups was a high place of French resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
during World War II. The city earned the Croix de guerre avec palmes
Croix de guerre 1939-1945 (France)
The Croix de guerre 1939–1945 is a French military decoration created on September 26, 1939, to honour people who fought with the Allies against the Axis force at any time during World War II.-Recipients:...
.
Truffles
Aups has the third largest black truffle market of France, known for its quality and importance. This market is held every Thursday from November to February.Provençal Market
There is a colourful Provençal market, every Wednesday and Saturday featuring local products and handicrafts.People from Aups
- The BlacasBlacas-Blacas d'Aulps family:Blacas is the name of two old French houses which successively owned the Lordship of Aups castle in Provence ....
house - an old Provençal house, lords and dukes of Aups since the 12th century - Pierre PetitPierre PetitPierre Lanith Petit was a French photographer born in Aups, in Provence. He learned photography in Paris 'with' or better under orders of André-Adolphe-Eugène Disdéri in the 77 employees workshop...
(1832–1909) - photographer - General Jean-Baptiste GirardJean-Baptiste Girard (soldier)Jean-Baptiste Girard , was a French soldier, général and baron d'Empire, who fought in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars.-Biography:...
(1775–1815) - GénéralGénéralGénéral is the French word for General.In France, Army generals are named after the type of unit they command. In ascending order there are two ranks :* Général de brigade : Brigade General.* Général de division : Divisional General....
and baron d'EmpireNobility of the First French EmpireNapoleon Bonaparte created titles of nobility to institute a stable elite in the First French Empire, after the instability resulting from the French Revolution....
who fought the Napoleonic WarsNapoleonic WarsThe Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
. - J. R. R. Tolkien had a holiday house near the village.