La Croix-Valmer (; oc, La Crotz Valmer) is a commune in the Var department 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 prefe ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

in southeastern

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 ar ...

Geography

La Croix-Valmer is at the foot of the Massif des Maures hills in the Bay of Cavalaire-sur-Mer, halfway between Le Lavandou and

Saint-Tropez , INSEE = 83119 , postal code = 83990 , image coat of arms = Blason ville fr Saint-Tropez-A (Var).svg , image flag=Flag of Saint-Tropez.svg Saint-Tropez (; oc, Sant Tropetz, ; ) is a commune in the Var department and the region of Provence- ...

History

The Emperor

Constantine the Great Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterran ...

, on the way to wage war against his brother-in-law

Maxentius Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maxentius (c. 283 – 28 October 312) was a Roman emperor, who reigned from 306 until his death in 312. Despite ruling in Italy and North Africa, and having the recognition of the Senate in Rome, he was not recognized ...

in 312 AD, is said to have had a vision of a cross in the sky stating "in hoc signo vinces" (by this sign you will conquer) at the location where La Croix-Valmer is now situated. On April 16, 1893, a stone cross was erected on the site where tradition holds this vision occurred. La Croix-Valmer became a commune on 6 April 1934, separating from the commune of

Gassin Gassin () is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is located very near to the holiday destination of Saint-Tropez. Perched high up on a rock, it is less than from the sea. Many T ...

. The area has been inhabited since ancient times, as demonstrated by the discovery of remains such as prehistoric tools,

cist A cist ( or ; also kist ; from grc-gre, κίστη, Middle Welsh ''Kist'' or Germanic ''Kiste'') is a small stone-built coffin-like box or ossuary used to hold the bodies of the dead. Examples can be found across Europe and in the Middle East ...

s, and the Roman farm of Pardigon (dating from the third century BC). During the

Second World War 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the beaches of La Croix-Valmer were part of the Allied invasion of Provence during

Operation Dragoon Operation Dragoon (initially Operation Anvil) was the code name for the landing operation of the Allied invasion of Provence ( Southern France) on 15August 1944. Despite initially designed to be executed in conjunction with Operation Overlord, ...

. The name of one of the local beaches, Plage du Débarquement (" Landing Beach"), bears witness to this. Abel Faivre (1853-1945), a French painter, lived in La Croix Valmer, near the Gigaro beach.

References

Communes of Var (department) Populated coastal places in France {{Var-geo-stub

Geography

History

See also

References