Menton

Menton (Italian, Mentone) is a town and commune in the Alpes-Maritimes département of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur région of France. It has been called the most beautiful town on the French Riviera and its nickname is La perle de la France ("The pearl of France").

Geography

Menton is located on the Franco-Italian border, within the confines of the Côte d'Azur and the Ligurian Alps. It boasts a warm micro-climate favorable to lemon, tangerine and orange groves.

The fishing industry was devastated in the 1980s and 1990s when Killer Algae (Caulerpa Taxifolia, a non-native Asian tropical green algae first discovered in the Mediterranean Sea adjacent the Monaco sea-quarium in 1984) introduced to the local environment spread throughout the coastal sea floor decimating the local fish life.

History

Menton dates back to the Paleolithic age. Founded by the Count of Ventimiglia as château de Puypin (ca. 1000) and inhabited by Ligurian people, it was owned by the Grimaldi family from 1346 until 1848, before departing from the principality of Monaco and officially becoming French in 1861.

During the 19th century, Menton was popular because of its warm climate, and many famous people chose to take their vacation in the town.

Annexed by the Italians during World War II, Menton enjoyed a steady flow of goods and services during this period as an example of the benefits of Italian government but residents were forced to live as Italians. Germans in turn occupied Menton during the latter part of the war. Menton was liberated on September 8, 1944. The town was devastated and it was not until the 1960s that the re-building of Menton was concluded. It then regained its appeal as a tourist destination.

Sights

Perhaps the most famous aspect of Menton is its world-renowned gardens, including the Serre de la Madone, the Le Val Rahmeh, the Fontana Rosa, and the Maria Serena garden. Le Val Rahmeh, meaning "Valley of the Cat" in Hindi, was established in 1905 by Englishman Lord Radcliffe, the first owner of the gardens. Villa Fontana Rosa was built in 1922 by Blasco Ibanez, a Spanish novelist, and the gardens of the villa are now open to the public.

Events

Every year in February a "Lemon Party" festival takes place in the town. There are huge statues build from particular citrus fruit (lemons and oranges) and every year there is a special theme given to this festival. This year it was 'Viva l'Espana', in the year of 2004 it was Neverland theme. The festival lasts for few days, different interesting orchestras march in Menton's streets, displaying their fabulous instruments, in this way opening the park full of fruits.

Miscellaneous

Menton is twinned with:

• Baden-Baden, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
• Sochi, Russia

This article is licenced under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Menton".

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