The history of the Côte d'Azur
The jewel of the French coastline, the Côte d'Azur is an evocative term that makes the whole world dream. But do you know the origin of this name?
In France, "Côte d'Azur" is the most pronounced geographical expression after Paris. It has even given its name to the region that houses it. With its rugged coastline that juts out with unrivalled grace into the Mediterranean, its exotic and refreshing atmosphere, the persistent azure sky that inspired its name and the many shades of blue of the endless sea, it remains one of the world's most popular destinations today.
The history of the Côte d'Azur really began in the 18th century. The English aristocracy fell under the spell of its mild winter climate and actively participated in the region's tourist boom. In 1763, the English writer Thomas Smolett praised the merits of this country "where the light is clearer than elsewhere, where the sky is more clement, where the sun shines more often". The British then spoke of the French Riviera.
The term "Côte d'Azur" appeared for the first time in 1887 in the book of the same name. The author was none other than Stéphen Liégeard, a senior civil servant of the Second Empire, who had inspired "Le Sous-préfet aux champs", the ninth of Alphonse Daudet's "Lettres de mon moulin", several years earlier. In the 1880s, Stéphen Liégeard travelled the shores of the Mediterranean, with which he fell deeply in love. He evoked "a country of blue sea, sun and flowers" in an illustrated collection that he entitled "La Côte d'Azur", in reference to his native region, the Côte d'Or. It was an immediate success, and the term was taken up by everyone, even becoming the official name of the area a few years later.
Moreover, what are the limits of the Côte d'Azur? If there is little doubt about its eastern end (on the border with Italy and Liguria), its western starting point has been a source of heated debate for over a century. According to the original text, Stéphen Liégeard's journey begins in Hyères (although he also mentions Marseille and Toulon). The city of palm trees is in fact the most commonly cited beginning of the Côte d'Azur, even if some prefer the Calanques of Marseille / Cassis, Bandol, Toulon or Saint-Tropez. A debate that has not yet been officially settled...
