Alpes-Maritimes is a
département in the extreme southeast corner of
France.
History
The
Romans already had a province called
Alpes-Maritimes as early as
7 BC. Its capital was Cemenelum, today
Cimiez, a neighborhood in the north of Nice. At its largest in 297, this province extended to Digne and
Briançon, and its capital was Embrun.
A département of this name existed in France from 1793 to 1815, but it had different boundaries and included
Monaco and
San Remo.
The present département was created in 1860 when the county of Nice was annexed. It was constituted out of the county of
Nice and the
arrondissement of
Grasse in the département of
Var.
In 1947, the département was enlarged by the addition of the
communes of Tende and La Brigue, which had been Italian.
Geography
The department is surrounded by the French departments of
Var,
Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, the principality of
Monaco,
Italy on the east, and the Mediterranean on the south.
Alpes-Maritimes includes the famous
French Riviera coastline on the Mediterranean Sea with the important towns and cities of
Cannes,
Nice,
Juan les Pins,
Saint Jean Cap Ferrat, and
Antibes.
Rivers include the following:
- Var
- Aigue Blance
- Barlatte
- Bassera
- Bendole
- Bevera
- Borrigo
- Bourdoux
- Bouyon
- Brague
- Braisse
- Braus
- Cagne
- Caramagne
- Caréi
- Castérine
- Chalvagne
- Cians
- Clans
- Ciavanette
- Coulomb
- Éstéron
- Faye
- Fontanalbe
- Gorbio
- Gordolasque
- Guerche
- Levense
- Minière
- Loup
- Lubiane
- Maglia
- Magnan
- Mairole
- Malvan
- Nieya
- Oglione
- Paillon
- Raton
- Réfrei
- Riou
- Rioul
- Roudoule
- Roya
- Siagne
- Tinée
- Valmasque
- Vésubie
- Vionène
See also: List of the
communes of the Alpes-Maritimes département
Economy
The economy is largely driven by tourism. Nice is second only to
Paris in the number and size of its hotels. Because of the mild climate, it is a year-round tourist attraction.
Other notable industry includes the perfume industry in Grasse and high-tech industry around
Sophia-Antipolis.
Demographics
The inhabitants of the department are called
Maralpins.
When Nice became French in 1860, it was still a small town; the département had fewer than 200,000 inhabitants. However, the population grew quickly from 300,000 at the beginning of the
20th century to over a million. The population is aging because of the number of retirees who move to the coast.
The population is now concentrated in the urban region that includes Cannes, Grasse, Nice, and Menton, and which constitutes 90% of the total population.
Culture
The
Cannes Film Festival attracts wide attention and the cream of the film industry. Juan-les-Pins hosts an annual jazz festival.
Tourism
Tourism in the department centers on the Riviera, known as the Côte d'Azur, known for its beaches and luxury hotels.
Miscellaneous topics
External links
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fr:Alpes-Maritimes
it:Alpi Marittime (dipartimento francese)
nl:Alpes-Maritimes
oc:Aups-Maritimas
sv:Alpes-Maritimes