Aups

Aups
View of Aups
Coat of arms
Aups
Location within Provence-A.-C.d'A. region Aups
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Department	Var
Arrondissement	Brignoles
Canton	Aups
Government
• Mayor (2008–2014)	Antoine Faure
Area1	64.15 km2 (24.77 sq mi)
Population (2006)2	2,089
• Density	33/km2 (84/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	83007 / 83630
Elevation	390–1,077 m (1,280–3,533 ft) (avg. 505 m or 1,657 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Rue de l'horloge (Clock Street)

Aups (French pronunciation: ​[o]; Provençal Occitan: Aups in the classical norm, Aup in the Mistralian norm, pronounced [ˈaw]) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

Geography

Located in Provence at 500m alt, Aups is in the first foothills of the Alps. The town is at the gates of Verdon River, at 60 km from the sea and 80 km from the snow stations.
Aups is named Capital of Haut-Var and Capital of the truffle and was made a part of the Parc naturel régional du Verdon in 2000. Its typically Mediterranean climate makes the village a healthy place to live.

History

The village was named Oppidum de Alpibus (town of the Alps) then Castrum de Alpibus (fortress of the Alps), castrum de Almis, then Alps and now Aups. The place was colonized by the Oxybians (a Ligurian tribe) during the time of Ancient Rome, near Via Aurelia going from Fréjus (Forum Julii) to Riez (Forum Reii). Julius Caesar visited Aups on his way to conquering Gaul. He is supposed to have said, « I would rather be the first man in Aups than the second in Rome ».

In 1574, the town was looted by the Huguenots, who massacred 18 residents. A statue called "Maiden of the Massacre" was erected on square where the massacre took place, in Clock Street.
Aups was the centre of the Var Republican insurgency in 1851 against the coup d'état of Napoleon III, and became known as the "Center of Red Var".

Aups was a stronghold of the French Resistance during World War II. The city earned the Croix de guerre avec palmes.

Tourism

Truffles

Aups has the third largest black truffle market of France, known for its quality and importance. This market is held every Thursday from November to February.

Provençal Market

There is a colourful Provençal market, every Wednesday and Saturday featuring local products and handicrafts.

People from Aups

• The Blacas house - an old Provençal house, lords and dukes of Aups since the 12th century
• Pierre Petit (1832–1909) - photographer
• General Jean-Baptiste Girard (1775–1815) - Général and baron d'Empire who fought the Napoleonic Wars.
• J. R. R. Tolkien had a holiday house near the village.

See also

• Communes of the Var department

References

• INSEE