Tarascon (; ), sometimes referred to as Tarascon-sur-Rhône, is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

situated at the extreme west of the

Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and ...

department of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

in the

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (; or , ; commonly shortened to PACA; en, Provence-Alps-French Riviera, italic=yes; also branded as Région Sud) is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, the far southeastern on the mainland. Its pref ...

region. Inhabitants are referred to as Tarasconnais or Tarasconnaises. The patron saint of the city is

Martha of Bethany Martha (Hebrew: מָרְתָא‎) is a biblical figure described in the Gospels of Luke and John. Together with her siblings Lazarus and Mary of Bethany, she is described as living in the village of Bethany near Jerusalem. She was witness to J ...

, whose motto is "Concordia Felix".

Geography

Tarascon is located south of Avignon and north of

Arles Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of ...

, on the left (east) bank of the river

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

. On the other side is the similarly sized town of Beaucaire in the ''département'' of Gard, ''région'' of

Occitania Occitania ( oc, Occitània , , or ) is the historical region in Western and Southern Europe where the Occitan language was historically spoken and where it is sometimes still used as a second language. This cultural area roughly encompasse ...

. Directly opposite each other and connected by several bridges, Beaucaire and Tarascon effectively constitute one town, with about 30,000 inhabitants. An irrigation canal of 18,00 km length rejoins the Rhone near Tarascon.

Climate

The climate in the

Alpilles The Chaîne des Alpilles is a small range of low mountains in Provence, southern France, located about south of Avignon. Geography The range is an extension of the much larger Luberon range. Although it is not high - some 498 m (1,634 ...

is considered

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

. The winters are mild and dry and the summers hot and dry. The maximum temperature is observed in July and August (+ 29 °C = ~84 °F), the minimum temperature in December and January (+ 3 °C = ~37 °F). The rainiest month is January with seven days of rain on average, against two days in July, the driest month. The Alpilles region receives more rainfall than the coast of the Mediterranean: 500 mm / year in the Camargue against 600–700 mm / year for the Alpilles. The

mistral Mistral may refer to: * Mistral (wind) in southern France and Sardinia Automobiles * Maserati Mistral, a Maserati grand tourer produced from 1963 until 1970 * Nissan Mistral, or Terrano II, a Nissan 4×4 produced from 1993 until 2006 * Microp ...

blows violently from the north or northwest, especially in winter and spring . The mistral blows strongly 100 days a year on average and more weakly for 83 days, which leaves only 182 windless days per year. Two types are distinguished; the "white mistral", which clears the sky, and the rarer "black mistral", which is accompanied with rain.

Hamlets

Hamlets located on the territory of the commune include: * Lansac * Saint-Gabriel (ancient ''Ernaginum'')

History

Allied-airmen-destroyed-these-bridges-over-the-Rhone-River-at-Tarascon-391769137276

Shards dating from the Late Bronze Age have been found in a shelter at a place called the Lèque, confirming the existence of human settlement in the Alpilles since prehistoric times. Settlement spread in the early Iron Age. At Tarascon, the sites sit alongside the Rhone, near the church of Sainte-Marthe. In the second part of the first Iron Age (7th–6th centuries BC), the population, shifted from a nomadic lifestyle to a sedentary one and began to construct extensive buildings. Trade intensified with the Eastern Mediterranean, with the people of the area likely trading grain for luxury goods. Located along the Rhone, at the crossroads between Avignon, the Camargue and the Luberon, Tarascon is still associated with fairy tales and legends dating back to prehistory. According to tradition,

Martha Martha (Hebrew: מָרְתָא‎) is a biblical figure described in the Gospels of Luke and John. Together with her siblings Lazarus and Mary of Bethany, she is described as living in the village of Bethany near Jerusalem. She was witness ...

of Bethany, who came from Judea, landed at Tarascon c. AD 48 where an amphibious dragon or

tarasque The Tarasque is a fearsome legendary dragon-like mythological hybrid from Provence, in southern France, tamed in stories about Saint Martha, such as the one told in Jacobus de Voragine's '' Golden Legend'' (13th century). The tarasque was des ...

was destroying the river traffic. She tamed the beast only for it to be butchered by the townspeople. Many pilgrims visit the Royal College of Sainte-Marthe, built in her honor near the castle of King René. This sanctuary, the main monument of the city, contains the relics and the tomb of St. Martha in the crypt which was built on the exact location of her house. Rostagnetus of Tharascone, knight, was provost of Nice, Alderman of Tarascon (1322, 1325) and son of former co-lords of the city in the 12th century. In 1366–67, Guillam de Sault ruled Tarascon. He received an annual salary of 90 florins. The death of Queen Joanna I reopened a succession crisis at the head of the County of Provence, the cities of the Aix Union (1382–1387) supporting Charles de Duras against Louis I of Anjou . Tarascon hesitated before joining the Union of Aix, the community deciding in 1383, without committing itself very firmly. When Louis I died, Tarascon was also one of the first cities to receive Jacques Reillanne, Ambassador of his widow Marie de Blois, regent of Louis II of Anjou, in the summer of 1385. He successfully persuaded them to switch sides and join the Angevin Kings of Anjou. The castle is well preserved. The work of construction began in 1400 under Louis II of Anjou and completed in 1449 by his son, King René, led by Guillaume Crespin, captain of the castle, and his lieutenant, Regnault Serocourt, its close relative . With an impressive defensive system, the building also houses a princely residence. The town was damaged by Allied bombings from June to August 1944, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The bombings, targeting the bridges across the Rhone in an attempt to hamper the German retreat, destroyed parts of the old town. The first bombing took place on June 25, 1944. On August 16, 1944, the tip of the church tower of Église Sainte-Marthe was destroyed. In July 2021 the remains of a 13-year-old missing boy were found in Tarascon. A cleaner who entered a terraced house in the old town found the boy's mutilated body, including his partially-eaten head, placed inside a bag.

Sights

Collegiate Church

''Église collégiale Ste Marthe'' ( St Martha's

Collegiate Church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons: a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by ...

) is where, according to a local tradition, the biblical figure

is buried. The church was built half- Romanesque in the 12th century and half- Gothic in the 14th century. The crypt dates from the 3rd century. Collegiate Sainte-Marthe was dedicated in 1197 and enlarged in the 14th and 15th centuries. The crypt houses the relics of Martha in a sarcophagus of the fourth century.

Medieval castle

The castle of King René ( fr). The present castle replaced a fortress, built on the site of the Roman town to monitor the border of Provence. After the destruction perpetrated in 1399 by the bands of Raymond de Turenne, the Anjou family decided to rebuild it entirely. The construction of the current castle of Tarascon was started in 1401 by

Louis II of Anjou Louis II (5 October 1377 – 29 April 1417) was Duke of Anjou and Count of Provence from 1384 to 1417; he claimed the Kingdom of Naples, but only ruled parts of the kingdom from 1390 to 1399. His father, Louis I of Anjouthe founder of the House ...

. The construction was continued by his first son,

Louis III of Anjou Louis III (25 September 1403 – 12 November 1434) was a claimant to the Kingdom of Naples from 1417 to 1426, as well as count of Provence, Forcalquier, Piedmont, and Maine and duke of Anjou from 1417 to 1434. As the heir designate to the throne of ...

, and was completed in 1449 by his second son, René I of Naples (René d'Anjou). Thus, the castle is often referred to as ''le château du roi René'' (King René's castle). It was turned into a military prison in the 17th century, until its acquisition by the state in 1932. It consists of two independent parts: the South, the stately home, flanked by round towers on the city side and river side with walls of up to 48 m high and square towers and the North, the lower court that defends the rectangular constructions. It stands right on the banks of the Rhône opposite Château de Beaucaire, and near St Martha's Collegiate Church. ()

Other historic buildings

;Civilian and military architecture * Historic town centre, including Rue des Halles and its arcades * Hôtel de Ville ( town hall), built in 1648 in Baroque style. The statue of St. Martha slaying the Tarasque was conducted by the sculptor Louis Le Male. * Three city gates remain from the former

city wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

, demolished in 1820: Portail St. Jean, Porte de la Condamine and Porte Jarnègues. * Casernes Kilmaine. Former barracks. Since 2012, it house the ''Tribunal de grande instance'' court. ;Religious architecture * Cloître des Cordeliers. 16th-century

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...

* Eglise Saint-Jacques ( fr). Built between 1740 and 1745 in Baroque style by Antoine Damour from Tarascon, following the plans of architect Jean-Baptiste Franque from Avignon * Frigolet Abbey * Chapelle Saint Gabriel ( fr). 12th-century Romanesque chapel southeast of the town.

Coat of arms

Tarascon's coat of arms depicts in its upper half the city's castle, and in the lower half the fearsome

, legendary tamed by

, but here in the process of devouring a man.

Culture

La Tarasque et les Chevaliers de la Tarasque

Municipal theater. A mythological monster, the

Tarasque The Tarasque is a fearsome legendary dragon-like mythological hybrid from Provence, in southern France, tamed in stories about Saint Martha, such as the one told in Jacobus de Voragine's '' Golden Legend'' (13th century). The tarasque was des ...

, is said to have lived there at the beginning of the 1st century. It was purportedly tamed by

in 48 AD. See

for details. The novel '' Tartarin de Tarascon'' (1872) and its two sequels '' Tartarin sur les Alpes'' (1885) and '' Port-Tarascon'' (1890), by Alphonse Daudet, were set here. Since 1985, there has been a small museum in the town, dedicated to the fictional character Tartarin. A festival is held every year on the last Sunday of June to remember Tartarin and the Tarasque. Private museum Souleiado. Opened in 1988 in the 17th century hôtel d'Ayminy.Musée Souleiado
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Administration

Economy

In 2008, the median household income tax was €13,986, placing in Tarascon 29,178th among the 31,604 communes with more than 50 households in France. Olive oil from the Valley of Baux-de-Provence is a protected designation of origin (AOC) from an order made by the INAO, the 27 August 1997. The varieties of olives that fall within this order are the Béruguette, Grossane and verdale Bouches-du-Rhône. It also produces crushed olives and black olives included in the order of the INAO. The varieties of olives crushed are salonenque and Béruguette. For black olives the only variety accepted is Grossane. Apart from agriculture, the industry most easily identifiable around the

is tourism. Even the wine and olive oil producers take into account the development of tourism and increasingly offer tasting services. There are three main types of tourism in the Alpilles. First, the historical and cultural tourism that relies on a rich historical heritage (

Les Baux-de-Provence Les Baux-de-Provence (; oc, label=Provençal dialect, Provençal, Lei Bauç de Provença), commonly called Baux, is a Communes of France, commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regio ...

, Glanum, etc..) or festivals. Second, the relaxation tourism resulting in a significant expansion of B&Bs, hotels and rented properties. Finally, the green tourism that benefits from the many hiking trails and protected framework offered by the massif and its surroundings.

Population

Personalities

* Ricau de Tarascon (active between 1200-1240), Provençal

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

and

troubadour A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a ''trobairi ...

* Joseph ben Abba Mari ben Joseph ben Jacob Caspi (1280—1345), prominent Jewish medieval philosopher, lived in Tarascon * Immanuel ben Jacob Bonfils (c. 1300 – 1377), Jewish mathematician and astronomer, lived in Tarascon * René d'Anjou (1409-1480), lived in Tarascon * Claude de Bectoz (1490-1547), female writer and philosopher of the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

, abbess of the Benedictines Monastery Saint Honorat, lived in Tarascon * Honoré du Laurens (1564-1612), archbishop of Embrun, was born in Tarascon * André du Laurens (1558-1609), physician, was born in Tarascon * Sauvaire Intermet (c.1573–1657), musician and composer, was born in Tarascon * Esprit Fléchier (1632–1710), preacher and author, Bishop of Nîmes from 1687, studied and later taught at the Collège of Tarascon * Jean Gilles (1668–1705), composer, was born in Tarascon * Joseph Privat de Molières (1676-1742), physicist and mathematician, was born in Tarascon * Léon Ménard (1706–1767), lawyer and historical writer, was born in Tarascon *

Jean-Esprit Isnard Jean-Esprit Isnard (1707–1781) was a French pipe organ builder. Biography Early life Jean-Esprit Isnard was born in 1707. He was baptised in the Église Saint-Laurent in Bédarrides. He learned how to build pipe organs in Toulouse. His b ...

(1707-1781), pipe organ builder, lived and died in Tarascon *

Hippolyte de Sade de Vaudronne Hippolyte-Augustin de Sade de Vaudronne (3 October 1710, in Tarascon – 18 September 1780, in ''Triomphant'', off Cadiz) was a French Navy officer. He served during the War of American Independence. Biography Sade was born to a noble fami ...

(1710-1780), French Navy officer, was born in Tarascon * Conrad Mouren (1731-1795), secretary of the Municipality of Tarascon. * Urbain Audibert (1789-1846),

nurseryman A nursery is a place where plants are propagated and grown to a desired size. Mostly the plants concerned are for gardening, forestry or conservation biology, rather than agriculture. They include retail nurseries, which sell to the general p ...

, was born in Tarascon * Joseph Desanat (1796-1873), poet and journal editor, was born in Tarascon * Étienne-Michel Faillon (1800–1870), Catholic historian, was born in Tarascon * Joseph Roumanille (1818–1891), poet and one of the founders of

Félibrige The ''Félibrige'' (; in classical Occitan, in Mistralian spelling, ) is a literary and cultural association founded in 1854 by Frédéric Mistral and other Provençal writers to defend and promote the Occitan language (also called the ) and ...

, studied and worked there from 1834 to 1839 * Jean Barnabé Amy (1839-1907), sculptor, was born in Tarascon *

Brémonde de Tarascon Alexandrine Élisabeth Brémond (28 October 1858 – 22 June 1898), known as Brémonde de Tarascon, was a well known poet from the south of France who wrote in the Occitan language. She was a member of the Félibrige, a society that tried to prese ...

(1858–1898), poet who wrote in the Occitan language *

S. R. Crockett Samuel Rutherford Crockett (24 September 1859 – 16 April 1914), who published under the name "S. R. Crockett", was a Scottish novelist. Life and work He was born at Little Duchrae, Balmaghie, Kirkcudbrightshire, Galloway on 24 September 18 ...

(1859–1914) Scottish novelist, lived and died in Tarascon * Jean Théveney (1866–1960), army officer, was born in Tarascon * Marius Chaîne (1873-1960), Jesuit, scholar of Ethiopic and

Copt Copts ( cop, ⲛⲓⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ; ar, الْقِبْط ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group indigenous to North Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt and Sudan since antiquity. Most ethnic Copts are Co ...

philology Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined as th ...

, was born in Tarascon * Jean-François Rodriguez (born 1957), professional

racing cyclist Cycle sport is competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing cycling s ...

, was born in Tarascon * Sébastien Fidani (born 1978), professional footballer, was born in Tarascon * Youssef Hajdi (born 1979), actor, was born in Tarascon * Driss Himmes (born 1983), professional footballer, was born in Tarascon *

Yoan Benyahya Yoan Benyahya (born 26 May 1987) is a French professional footballer who plays as a defender for Championnat National 2 club Granville. Career Benyahya began his career with Nîmes in 2006 but made only one senior appearance in three years ...

(born 1987), professional footballer, was born in Tarascon

Twin towns

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Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

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since 1987 *

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, Switzerlandsince 1969 * Tarascon-sur-Ariège,

since 2017

Transportation

Tarascon is served by a train station and several bus lines. The GR 6 footpath runs through Tarascon.