Draguignan
Encyclopedia
Draguignan is a commune
in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
region
, in southeastern France
.
It is a sub-prefecture of the department and self-proclaimed "capital of Artillery" and "Porte du Verdon
".
The city is only 42 km (26.1 mi) from St. Tropez, and 80 km (49.7 mi) from Nice.
The city is set in a valley NW-SE, about 2 km (1 mi) wide.
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
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...
.
It is a sub-prefecture of the department and self-proclaimed "capital of Artillery" and "Porte du Verdon
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...
".
The city is only 42 km (26.1 mi) from St. Tropez, and 80 km (49.7 mi) from Nice.
City's name
According to legend, the name of the city is derived from the Latin name “Draco/Draconem” (dragon) : a bishop, called Saint Hermentaire, killed a Dragon and saved people.Motto
The Latin motto of Draguignan is : Alios nutrio, meos devoro (I feed others, I devour my children).Geography
The elevation is 200 m, the highest hill near Draguignan being the “Malmont” (551 m). The main river near Draguignan is the “Nartuby”.The city is set in a valley NW-SE, about 2 km (1 mi) wide.
History
- The name of Draguignan (“Dragonianum”) appeared for the first time in 909.
- During all Middle-Age, Draguignan was a small village, people living thanks to olive and grape culture.
- Draguignan became the “prefecture” of the Var in 1790, at the beginning of The French Revolution, despite the town not being the biggest city of the department (it was Toulon), and kept this function until 1974.
- In the 19th century and during a large part of the 20th century, the people of Draguignan (in French : “Dracénois”, in English : “Draceners”) voted for liberal parties (Radical-Socialist Party, Socialist Party).
- The town was occupied by the Wehrmacht in 1942-44 ; Draguignan became free in August 1944, after Operation DragoonOperation DragoonOperation Dragoon was the Allied invasion of southern France on August 15, 1944, during World War II. The invasion was initiated via a parachute drop by the 1st Airborne Task Force, followed by an amphibious assault by elements of the U.S. Seventh Army, followed a day later by a force made up...
.
- The city welcomed the “Ecole nationale d'artillerie” (Artillery School) in 1976, then the “Ecole nationale d'infanterie” (Infantry School) in 2010. The arrival of the military involves the development of the city : the small town became a city in the second part of the 20th century : 13 400 citizens in 1954, 33 000 in 2000, 38 000 in 2010.
- On June 15, 2010, the city was flooded: torrential rain caused the death of 12 people in downtown, and 25 in the neighborhood.
Major attractions
- Museum of ArtilleryArtilleryOriginally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
(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...
, World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, IndochinaFrench IndochinaFrench Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
, etc.) - Museum of "Arts et traditions populaires"
- Rhone American Cemetery and MemorialRhone American Cemetery and MemorialThe Rhone American Cemetery and Memorial is an American war cemetery in Southern France, memorializing American soldiers and mariners who died in Second World War operations in that area. The cemetery covers within the city of Draguignan. The cemetery is named for the Rhone river and its...
(American WWII cemetery) (see operation DragoonOperation DragoonOperation Dragoon was the Allied invasion of southern France on August 15, 1944, during World War II. The invasion was initiated via a parachute drop by the 1st Airborne Task Force, followed by an amphibious assault by elements of the U.S. Seventh Army, followed a day later by a force made up...
) - The Eglise St Michel
- Eglise Notre-Dame du Peuple
- The DolmenDolmenA dolmen—also known as a portal tomb, portal grave, dolmain , cromlech , anta , Hünengrab/Hünenbett , Adamra , Ispun , Hunebed , dös , goindol or quoit—is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of...
Pierre de la fée (fairy's Stone), also known as the fruit rock.
Personalities connected to Draguignan
- Georges ClemenceauGeorges ClemenceauGeorges Benjamin Clemenceau was a French statesman, physician and journalist. He served as the Prime Minister of France from 1906 to 1909, and again from 1917 to 1920. For nearly the final year of World War I he led France, and was one of the major voices behind the Treaty of Versailles at the...
was a politician of Draguignan : deputy of the district of Draguignan (1885–1893) and senator of the same district (1902–1920), French prime minister in 1906-1909 and 1917–1920 - Émile OllivierÉmile OllivierOlivier Émile Ollivier was a French statesman. Although a republican, he served as a cabinet minister under Emperor Napoleon III and led the process of turning his regime into a "liberal Empire".-Early life and career:Émile Ollivier was born in Marseille...
was a politician of Draguignan : deputy of the district of Draguignan, then prime minister in 1870 - Maximin IsnardMaximin IsnardMaximin Isnard , French revolutionary, was a dealer in perfumery at Draguignan when he was elected deputy for the département of the Var to the Legislative Assembly, where he joined the Girondists.- Before the French Revolution :Born in 1755, he was the last son of Maximin Isnard and Anne-Thérèse...
was a politician of Draguignan - Georges ThillGeorges ThillGeorges Thill was a French opera singer, often considered to be his country's greatest lyric-dramatic tenor...
, died in Draguignan - Lily PonsLily PonsLily Pons was a French-American operatic soprano and actress who had an active career from the late 1920s through the early 1970s. As an opera singer she specialized in the coloratura soprano repertoire and was particularly associated with the title roles in Léo Delibes' Lakmé and Gaetano...
, born in Draguignan - Claude GayClaude GayClaude Gay, real name : Claudio Gay Mouret , was a French botanist, naturalist and illustrator.The Cordillera de Claudio Gay in the Atacama Region of Chile is named after him....
, born in Draguignan - Abel DouayAbel DouayCharles Abel Douay was a general in the French army during the reign of the Emperor Napoleon III. He commanded troops in numerous French campaigns in Europe and overseas. He was killed in battle at the age of sixty-one, near Wissembourg during the Franco-Prussian War.-Early life and career:Charles...
, born in Draguignan - Hippolyte Mège-MourièsHippolyte Mège-MourièsHippolyte Mège-Mouriès was a French chemist who invented margarine.He was born as Hippolyte Mège, the son of a primary school teacher, but later added his mother's surname to his own...
, born in Draguignan - Alain ConnesAlain ConnesAlain Connes is a French mathematician, currently Professor at the Collège de France, IHÉS, The Ohio State University and Vanderbilt University.-Work:...
, born in Draguignan - Michaël Fabre, born in Draguignan
- Nicolas AgnesiNicolas AgnesiNicolas Agnesi is a French rugby union player, born September 9, 1988, in Draguignan , who plays as left prop for Pau club .He joined the "pôle espoir à Marcoussis" for the 2006 in rugby union.- Career :* Until 2006 : Draguignan...
, born in Draguignan - Charlotte MorelCharlotte MorelCharlotte Morel , is a professional French triathlete, nine times National Champion in various duathlon and triathlon categories , e.g...
, born in Draguignan - Michel ConstantinMichel ConstantinMichel Constantin was a French film actor.-Biography:Born to a Russian father and a Polish mother in Billancourt , Constantin made his first film appearance in 1956. His first credited role was in the prison breakout drama Le Trou in 1960.-External links:...
, died in Draguignan - Jean-Marie AubersonJean-Marie AubersonJean-Marie Auberson was a Swiss conductor and violinist, student of Ernest Ansermet and Carl Schuricht.He was born in Chavornay, Vaud canton, Switzerland and died in Draguignan, Var, France....
, died in Draguignan - Louis MorériLouis MorériLouis Moréri was a French encyclopaedist.His encyclopaedia, Le grand Dictionaire historique, ou le mélange curieux de l'histoire sacrée et profane was first published in Lyon in 1674. The encyclopaedia focused particularly on historical and biographical articles...
studied in Draguignan - Gustave Ferrié studied in Draguignan
- Philippe SeguinPhilippe SéguinPhilippe Séguin was a French political figure who was President of the National Assembly from 1993 to 1997 and President of the Cour des Comptes of France from 2004 to 2010....
studied in Draguignan
See also
- Communes of the Var department
- List of Draguignan's mayors since 1800 (in French)
- List of Draguignan's streets (in French)
External links
- City council website (in French)