Nice

NICE, a city of France, the chief town of the department of the Alpes Maritimes, and previous to 186o the capital of the county of Nice (Nizza) in the kingdom of Sardinia, 739 m. by rail from Paris. Pop. (1931) 177,19o. The population fluctuates with the seasons, owing to the influx of winter visitors.

The town is situated at the mouth of the Paillon (Paglione), at the northern end of the Baie des Anges. The historical nucleus of the town is an isolated limestone hill, running back for some dis tance from the shore and formerly crowned by a castle. Towards its south-west corner stands a tower (Tour Bellanda or Clerissy) dating, it is said, from the sth century. The old town stretches along the western base of the hill; the "town of the 18th century" on ground farther west slopes gently towards the Paillon ; and to the north-east and north and west beyond the stream lies the modern city. To the east of the hill the commercial quarter sur rounds the port. The whole frontage of Nice is composed of fine embankments, notably the Promenade des Anglais begun 5822-24 at the cost of the English colony, and the course of the Paillon also is embanked on both sides. Besides a Roman Catholic cathe dral—Ste. Reparate, dating from i650—Nice possesses two Rus sian churches, two synagogues and an Anglican chapel. Archi tecturally the most remarkable church is Notre Dame du Voeu, a modern Gothic building. The lycee was founded by the Jesuits in the 17th century and at some distance from the town there is an astronomical and meteorological observatory on Mont Gros (1,22o ft.).

Industry and Trade.

The industrial establishments are per fumery factories, distilleries, oil-works, furniture and woodwork factories, confectionery works, soap-works, factories for silk goods, straw hats, rubber goods, pianolas, metal goods and a national tobacco factory. Besides the vine, the trees principally cultivated in the neighbourhood are the olive, the orange, the mulberry and the carob ; and the staple exports are oil, agricultural produce, fruits and flowers. Nice now joins on the north-east the ancient episcopal town of Cimiez, where are the most luxurious hotels. Reckoning from east to west the town is surrounded by a girdle of beautiful towns—Carabacel, St. Etienne, St. Philippe and Les Beaumettes. On the east of the port lie Montboron, Riquier and St. Roch, the last partly occupied by barracks. The entrances to the port of Nice and the outer pier have been improved ; that of the outer port is 30o ft. wide, and that of the inner 220 ft. The area of the harbour is about 8 acres; vessels drawing more than 23 ft. cannot enter; its trade is mostly coastal, principally in French and Italian vessels. Nice is an episcopal see (first men tioned at the end of the 4th century) under the archbishop of Aix. It belongs to the XV. military division (Marseilles). It is the seat of a prefect, of tribunals of first instance and of commerce, and of a board of trade arbitrators. The coastal railway is the main line of communication ; an extension of the branch line up the Paillon valley to l'Ecarene joining the Ventimiglio-Coni (Cuneo) line at Breil was opened on Oct. 3o, 1928.

Climate.—Protected towards the north by hills which rise stage behind stage to the main ridge of the Alps, Nice is celebrated for the mildness of its climate. The mean temperature is 6o°, that of winter being 49°, of spring 56°, of summer 72° and of autumn 63°. For a few nights in winter there is frost, but snow is practically unknown. The highest reading of the thermometer is rarely above 90°. There are sixty-seven days with rain in the course of the year ; but it usually falls in heavy showers which soon leave the sky clear again; the whole annual amount exceeds 32 in. Fine days and rainy days are almost equally distributed

throughout the different seasons. The winds are very variable, sometimes changing several times a day, but the most frequent is the east wind. April and May are the most windy months. The south-west wind (called Libeccio, or wind of Lybia) is moist and warm; the north-east (or Gregaou, Greek), which is happily rare, brings storms of hail and even snow in winter. The mistral (from the north-west) and the tramontane (from the north) are gen erally stopped by the mountains. For two thousand years the climate of Nice has been considered favourable in chest com plaints ; it also benefits cases of gout, asthma, catarrhs, rachitic affections, scrofula, stone ; but the reverse is the case when heart disease, nervous disorders or ophthalmia are concerned. Autumn is the best season; in spring the sudden changes of temperature demand great care. The city is famous for its carnival festivities, especially the "battle of flowers." History.—Nice (Nicaea) was founded about two thousand years ago by the Phocaeans of Marseilles, and was named in honour of a victory (vidcn) over the neighbouring Ligurians. It soon became a busy trading station, but had a rival in the town of Cemenelum, in existence till the time of the Lombard invasions, which has left its ruins at Cimiez. In the 7th century Nice joined the Genoese league formed by the towns of Liguria. In 729 it repulsed the Saracens; but in 859 and 88o they pillaged and burned it, and for the most of the loth century remained masters of the surrounding country. As an ally of Pisa Nice was the enemy of Genoa, and both the king of France and the emperor endeavoured to subjugate it; but it maintained its liberties. In the course of the 13th and 14th centuries it fell more than once into the hands of the counts of Provence; and at length in 1388 it placed itself under the protection of the counts of Savoy. The maritime strength of Nice now rapidly increased till it was able to cope with the Barbary pirates; the fortifications were largely extended and the roads to the city improved. During the struggle between Francis I. and Charles V. great damage was caused by the passage of the armies invading Provence ; pestilence and famine raged in the city for several years. In 1543 Nice was attacked by the united forces of Francis I. and Barbarossa; and the inhabitants were ultimately compelled to surrender, and Barbarossa was allowed to pillage the city and to carry off 2,500 captives. Pestilence appeared again in 1550 and 1580. In /6o0 Nice was taken by the duke of Guise.

By opening the ports of the countship to all nations, and pro claiming full freedom of trade, Charles Emmanuel in 1626 gave a great stimulus to the city. Captured by Catinat in 1691, Nice was restored to Savoy in 1696, but it was again besieged by the French in 1705, and in the following year its citadel and ramparts were demolished. The treaty of Utrecht in 1713 once more gave the city back to Savoy ; and in the peaceful years which followed the "new town" was built. From 1744 till the peace of Aix-la Chapelle (1748) the French and Spaniards were again in posses sion. In 1775 the king of Sardinia destroyed all that remained of the ancient liberties of the commune. Conquered in 1792 by the armies of the French Republic, the county of Nice continued to be part of France till 1814 ; but of ter that date it reverted to Sardinia. By a treaty concluded in 1860 between the Sardinian king and Napoleon III. it was again transferred to France.