Fayence (; ) is a commune in the Var department in the

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (commonly shortened to PACA), also known as Région Sud, is one of the eighteen Regions of France, administrative regions of France, located at the far southeastern point of the Metropolitan France, mainland. The main P ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

in Southeastern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Fayence is one of a series of "perched villages" overlooking the plain between the southern

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

and the

Esterel massif The Massif de l'Esterel (Occitan Provençal: ''Esterèu''; English: Esterel Massif) is a Mediterranean coastal mountain range in the departments of Var and Alpes-Maritimes on the French Riviera. Neighbouring cities are Mandelieu-la-Napoule and C ...

, which borders the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

between

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

and Saint-Raphaël. The village is located on the road to

Mons Mons commonly refers to: * Mons, Belgium, a city in Belgium * Mons pubis (mons Venus or mons veneris), in mammalian anatomy, the adipose tissue lying above the pubic bone * Mons (planetary nomenclature), a sizable extraterrestrial mountain * Batt ...

, which later on joins the Route

Napoléon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led a series of mi ...

linking

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one million Grenoble Grenoble ( ; ; or ; or ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Isère Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region ...

through the

. Some high-standing resorts have settled nearby the village in the recent years: the Domaine de Terre Blanche at Tourrettes and Domaine de Fayence attract a foreign clientele. The village contains a primary school (École de la Ferrage) and a junior high school (Collège Marie Mauron). The Aérodrome de Fayence-Tourettes is one of the most active in Europe for gliding; it hosts the Provence Côte d'Azur Aeronautical Association.

History

Before and during WWII, Fayence-Tourettes Airfield was an air force base. On 13 June 1940, 12 Italian

Fiat CR.42 Falco The Fiat CR.42 ''Falco'' (Falcon, plural: ''Falchi'') is a single-seat sesquiplane fighter developed and produced by Italian aircraft manufacturer Fiat Aviazione. It served primarily in the Italian in the 1930s and during the Second World War. ...

s from 151° ''Gruppo'' of 53° ''Stormo'' attacked the airfield, destroying several aircraft on the ground.Skulski 2007, p. 20.Sgarlato 2005, p. 24.De Marchi 1994, p. 6.

Population

Notable people

Gustave Malécot (28 December 1911–1998), mathematician

References

Citations

Bibliography

* De Marchi, Italo. ''Fiat CR.42 Falco'' (in Italian). Modena, Italy: Stem Mucchi, 1994. No ISBN. * Sgarlato, Nico. ''Fiat CR.42'' (in Italian). Parma, Italy: Delta Editrice, 2005. * Skulski, Przemysław. ''Fiat CR.42 Falco''. Redbourn, UK: Mushroom Model Publications, 2007. .

External links

Official site of the city of Fayence (in French)Photos of Fayence on PbaseAAPCA
Communes of Var (department) {{Var-geo-stub