Avignon stands for art and culture. The city is cosmopolitan and invites you to discover the Provencal lifestyle. The bridges over the Rhone, the impressive old town and the many green spaces and parks lend a wonderful charm to the city of Avignon.
SUR LE PONT D’AVIGNON
The folksong about the old stone bridge has made the name Avignon known world wide. However, the city only gained its true importance in the 14th century as the Pope’s residence. Seven French Popes lived in Avignon and for 67 years the town remained the seat of the Holy See and the centre of Christianity. Avignon became the magical and cultural centre of Europe. In the middle of the 14th century, within 35 years, the population increased from about 6,000 to 30,000 people. Soon the excessive lifestyle of the Popes, corruption and haggling by officials caused the Holy See of Avignon’s loss of authority. The so-called ‘Babylonian imprisonment’ ended 1376 and the seat of the Popes reverted to Rome. For more than 500 years, Avignon, a world stage for politics and culture, only had regional importance. At the start of the 19th century, the papal palace was declared a national heritage site, thereby changing the town into an outstanding theatre backdrop. In the past, pious pilgrims, emissaries of noble courts, merchants, jugglers and beggars came to Avignon. Today, visitors seek the arts and the theatre stage as in the former city of Popes.
