The city of Menton

Menton is the The Lemon Festival Capital of the World, located very close to the border of France and Italy and in many ways is more Italian than French. It has its own microclimate, generally milder than the rest of the French Riviera, and became in the late Nineteenth Century a place where Northern Europeans with TB came to either regain their health or to die. As a result its cemetery is filled with the graves of notable Englishmen, Germans, Russians. The old town is largely pedestrianised which adds to the charm of this sedate resort. Situated on the French Riviera, it is nicknamed la perle de la France (The Pearl of France). The Menton area has been inhabited since the paleolithic. In Roman times, the via Julia Augusta, a road connecting Placentia (now Piacenza) with Arelates (now Arles) passed through Menton, running along the Rue Longue in the old town. The first major settlement occurred during the 11th century CE, when the Count of Ventimiglia constructed the Ch??teau de Puypin (Podium Pinum) on the P??pin hill, north and west of the modern town center. During the 13th century, the seigneury of Puypin fell to the Vento family of Genoa who built a new castle along the Roman road, now the site of the Vieux-Ch??teau cemetery, providing the core around which the current town grew. Menton was thus incorporated into the Republic of Genoa. The first mention of Menton dates from 21 July 1262, in the peace treaty between Charles of Anjou and Genoa. Its position on the border between the Angevin-ruled Provence and the Republic of Genoa, which at the time claimed Monaco as its western limit, made it a coveted location. Acquired in 1346 by Charles Grimaldi, Lord of Monaco, Menton was ruled by the Princes of Monaco until the French Revolution. Annexed during the Revolution, Menton remained part of France through the First Empire. It belonged to the district of Sanremo in the department of Alpes-Maritimes, which at the time included Monaco and Sanremo. In 1814, Mento...

Channel: Check My City, Travel Guide, City Guide, Hotel Booking Video Length: 3m 17s Date Found: Mon, May 10 2010 11:33 AM Category: Travel Date Produced: Sun, Sep 13 2009 2:44 AM View Count: 0