A History of Vence – Part 1 – Prehistory through the Dark Ages

This article is the first in a series about the history of Vence. You can find links to the other articles at the bottom of the page.

The small town that we now know as Vence has been built, destroyed, rebuilt and destroyed again over and over and over throughout history. The streets that the tourists and visitors walk today, the houses where generations of locals have lived their lives, the shops full of local and regional products, the restaurants where families gather for an evening meal, the shaded squares where old men relax on benches and children play, the Cathedral and chapels where the faithful worship, the buildings that house museums, government offices, doctors, lawyers and so much more… all of this is a living testament to the enduring determination of the Vençois to not only survive but to prosper, expand and flourish throughout the years and centuries, no matter what obstacles and hardships they encountered and suffered through.

Down every street and alley that winds through the city are the ghosts of thousands upon thousands of souls who lived here previously. Many would still recognize parts of the city as it stands today, for in certain sections little has changed for hundreds of years. It takes less than ten minutes to walk around the ramparts of the old town but inside these walls lie countless stories that will never be told reaching back well over a thousand years. Before it was known as Vence it had names such as Vensa, Vencia, Vintia and Vintium.

Barbarians, plagues, sieges, famines, wars and more have, at one time or another, attempted to dominate or even end the life that courses through this unique and extraordinary town. In the end all have failed. Situated on a small plateau between the vast expanse of the Mediterranean Sea and the grand peaks of the Alpes, Vence remains today a vibrant jewel on the Côte d’Azur unlike any other city, town or village in the south of France. The history of Vence is long and distinguished, it has been celebrated in countless books and articles over the years. This is my small attempt to gather together some of the basic information and make it available to what I hope might be a new audience.

Most of my information comes from two sources:

Immortal Village by Donald Culross Peattie, a wonderful book that has been out of print for many years now, but which can still be found in used bookstores and on the web. It’s written in English, so it’s quite accessible for English speakers. I have digitized the book and you can download it in PDF form here on our website.

Histoire de Vence et du Pays Vençois by Georges Castellan and others. Written in French it’s a very thorough history of Vence and the area. You can download a Kindle version at Amazon and used copies can be found here and there.

This first article covers Prehistory through the Dark Ages. I will be adding new articles in the near future for other periods.

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Prehistory

While there is no archaeological evidence of settlement on the site of Vence before Roman times, the surrounding region has been inhabited by humans since the Paleolithic, or Old Stone Age, which began nearly two and a half million years ago. It’s fair to say that humans have been present in this area for as long as they have existed in Europe. Neanderthals lived here for hundreds of thousands of years, and some of their stone tools have survived. Remarkably well-preserved bones of early Homo sapiens — who replaced or assimilated the Neanderthals around 18,000 to 25,000 years ago — have been discovered in caves near Grimaldi, Italy, just across the border from Menton, about half an hour from Vence. The numerous caves in the great baous overlooking Vence likely provided shelter to humans over tens of thousands of years. Remains from the Mousterian period (around 50,000 to 40,000 BC), associated with Neanderthal culture, have been found in caves near Vence.

A New Age of Sheep and Wheat

Neolithic, or New Stone Age, people were the first humans to domesticate animals such as cattle, sheep, and goats, cultivate crops, and weave flax into linen on looms, beginning approximately 10,000 years ago. Winter wheat, which could be planted in the autumn before the seasonal rains and harvested in spring or summer, was a primary crop. Some seasonal festivals centered around the sowing and reaping of crops have echoes today in celebrations like Easter, Halloween, May Day, and Midsummer’s Day, though in very different forms. The days of hunting, drifting, and roaming were gradually coming to an end, as communities grew around settlements where farming and herding became the norm.

Sometime during the Bronze Age, probably between 2000 and 1000 BCE, a people known as the Ligurians moved westward through Provence from Italy, gradually blending with or dominating the indigenous Neolithic populations. These Ligurians lived by hunting, grazing sheep and goats, and farming wheat and barley. Historians have described them as “small in size, but robust.” Life was undoubtedly hard, as the rocky terrain of the region made farming difficult and labor-intensive. During the early Iron Age, probably around 700 to 500 BCE, a warrior people known as the Gauls (or Celts) began migrating into southern Gaul from the north. Over several centuries, the two peoples were embroiled in cycles of warfare, confrontation, and uneasy coexistence. Slowly, they began to mingle, eventually giving rise to the Celto-Ligurians.

The Nerusii

One of the tribes that emerged from these unions was the Nerusii, a small clan who occupied the territory for a considerable time. Small fortified settlements from this era — often referred to as oppidums and castellaras — have been found throughout the region, especially on the Baous Blanc and Baous Noir, where eleven such structures have been identified. An oppidum was typically a permanent settlement, home to a small tribe led by a chieftain or ruler. Rows and circles of stones, possibly once serving religious or ceremonial purposes, can still be seen today. The area we now call Vence lay along an ancient route — more of a mule track than a road — that linked the coast to the hinterlands beyond Vence: Coursegoules, Gréolières, Thorenc, the Col de Bleyne, St. Auban, and ultimately the Rhône Valley. This strategic location made Vence an important stop for travelers along the route.

Eventually, Phoenician traders began making their way across the Mediterranean, bringing goods that would find their way through trade networks into the hills around Vence — goods the Nerusii had never seen before: beads, iron pots, colorful dyed fabrics, mirrors of polished bronze, iron knives, and swords. Though they couldn’t have known it at the time, the relative isolation of the local tribes was coming to an end. More and more strangers appeared on the outskirts of the region, and for the first time the Nerusii would be mentioned in the records of advanced Mediterranean civilizations. While Phoenician merchants were active along the southern coasts of Gaul, they never established permanent settlements or colonies along the Provençal shore — that role would soon be taken by the Greeks.

The Phocaean Greeks were also active around this time, sailing westward across the Mediterranean and becoming some of the first great maritime traders of their age. As they expanded west, they established cities along the coast: Massalia (Marseille) around 600 BC, and later Antipolis (Antibes) and Nikaia (Nice) around 340 BC. The Phocaeans also helped establish what is considered one of the oldest known trade routes through southern France. Known as the Via Heraclea, this route linked Iberia to the Rhône valley, following the Mediterranean coast past places like Nîmes. From the Rhône, branches likely extended toward Aix and Marseille, and local paths may have connected inland settlements such as Tourrettes, Vence, Saint-Jeannet, and over the Alps toward Tende.

While there is no evidence that the Greeks ever settled in Vence, it is likely they made numerous trading trips into the hills to exchange goods with the Nerusii and other local tribes. The Greeks are credited with introducing olive trees, grapevines, fig trees, and many other plants that are now central to Provençal life. They also brought advancements in weaving, ceramics, pottery, and other crafts, which influenced local traditions.

Encounters between the Greeks and the Ligurian tribes, including the Nerusii, were not always peaceful. The Ligurian tribes discovered that pillaging and ransacking the Phocaean trading posts along the coast was easier and more rewarding than working their fields, hunting, or tending livestock. Initially, the Phocaeans sought only to defend themselves, but over time they adopted a more offensive approach, sending expeditions into the countryside to prevent attacks before they began.

When several tribes joined forces and attacked the region in 154 BCE, the Greeks requested military assistance from Rome. Led by Quintus Opimius, Roman campaigns in the area — possibly including actions near the Loup River not far from Vence — resulted in the defeat of the Ligurian tribes and marked the beginning of the decline of the Nerusii. The tribes were pushed back from the coast, with the Greeks securing the coastal strip and Roman influence expanding inland as a reward for their intervention.

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The Roman Empire Claims Vence

The Ligurians rose up again in 125 BCE, and this time it was the Roman consul Marcus Fulvius Flaccus who defeated them. In 118 BCE, Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus (the great-grandfather of Nero) defeated several tribes in battle (including the Allobroges and Arverni), and the entire region between the Alps and the Rhône became Roman territory. The Mediterranean coastline from the Rhône toward the Pyrenees also fell under Roman control. Only the small coastal strip from the Rhône eastward, held by the Greek cities, remained outside direct Roman rule.

The Romans rebuilt the Via Heraclea as they advanced across the region. In Gaul, the route became known as the Via Domitia, while the Via Aurelia extended westward from Italy. A branch of this system ran from Cagnes to Vence before heading north toward Castellane and Riez. The road was used for centuries, with repairs undertaken under emperors such as Tiberius and Nero. Later, it was again restored under local officials such as Julius Honotius and Maximus around 235 CE. As late as the 9th century, the road remained in use and was still passable through much of the territory. Eventually, however, it succumbed to the ravages of time and disappeared entirely.

The great Roman emperor Augustus led a series of campaigns, beginning around 25 BCE and concluding by 14 BCE, to pacify the Côte d’Azur and the Alpine region, driving out the Ligurian tribes and firmly establishing Roman control. Among the more than forty tribes defeated during these campaigns were the Nerusii, who disappear from the historical record afterward. Their name, along with those of forty-four other tribes, is engraved on the Trophy of Augustus — the magnificent victory monument erected in Augustus’s honor at La Turbie around 6 or 7 BC.

You can read a more in-depth account of the Trophy of Augustus in this article: Trophy of Augustus.

The province of Alpes Maritimae was established, and Vence became a Roman city known as Vintium. For centuries it prospered, situated along the important Via Julia Augusta, which linked La Turbie with Grasse and likely extended beyond. No written sources survive today to describe Vence during the Roman period, but it was most likely first a military post or colony, later becoming a municipium. Vintium is thought to have had a local senate, a prominent temple dedicated to Mars, a forum—probably located where Place Clemenceau is today—and even an aqueduct. The favorable location and climate attracted Roman settlers, and traces of the Roman city are still visible today, with more than twenty known relics surviving the passage of time.

You can read a more in-depth account of the Roman history of Vence in this article: From Vintium to Vence: Exploring the Ancient Roman Roots of Modern Day Vence.

The archeologist Edmond Blanc spent a good deal of time completely and thoroughly researching all the Roman remains still to be found in Vence. At the entrance to the current cathedral there are two Roman “dedication” stones, one on the left and one on the right that date back to the early 3rd century. Embedded in the outer walls of the cathedral are stone funeral dedications and a stone that celebrates a “taurobolium,” an old sacrificial ceremony. A dedication to the emperor Publius Cornelius Licinius Valerianus, again dating from the 3rd century, can be found embedded in the corner of a wall along rue Saint-Lambert.

One of the most beautiful of the Roman artifacts is what’s left of an ancient sarcophagus carved from Luni marble, part of which now serves as the front of an altar for the Saint Veran chapel inside the Cathedral. The central panel includes busts of a deceased couple, a child, a vine, a bird and some grapes. The two end panels of the sarcophagus have been sealed in the walls of the Cathedral very close to the chapel. They represent two Roman philosophers, one of which is holding a scroll in his hands.

Two Roman columns that also date from the 3rd century can be found, one in Place Grand Jardin and the other in Place Godeau. Known today as the Marseille Columns, they are the subject of much historical debate with some theorizing they were part of an ancient temple, others that they were some type of mile markers and still others claiming they were gifts from the city of Marseille. Other stone artifacts are stored in the basement of the former castle and the Chapel of the White Penitents.

You can read a more in-depth account of the Roman ruins found in Vence in this article: Uncovering Vence’s Roman Legacy: Exploring the Roman Artifacts of Vintium

You can read a more in-depth account of the Marseille Columns in this article: The Marseille Columns of Vence.

The Coming of Christianity

The story of how Christianity first came to Vence is not entirely clear. Due to its geographical location Provence was one of the first areas where the new religion began to spread. The combined testimonies of early Christian figures like Ignatius and Hermas, together with philosophical observers like Seneca (whether directly or through later interpretation), highlight the speed with which Christianity spread over the decades — from a local movement in Judea to a religion with a presence across the vast Roman Empire.

In 188 AD, Saint Irenaeus, bishop of Lyon, played a leading role in resolving disputes within the early Church. Eusebius of Caesarea mentions a synodal letter that Irenaeus sent to Pope Victor concerning the controversy over the date of Easter, reflecting the organized presence of bishops in Gaul at that time. While this marks clear evidence of an early Christian episcopal network, the spread of Christianity was gradual and uneven. The new faith achieved some successes but remained limited by the dominance of paganism and the waves of persecution carried out under various Roman emperors. By the third century, Christianity was still a minority faith, and pagan religious practices remained deeply rooted across Gaul.

The Roman emperor Constantine was the first to officially grant legal recognition to Christianity with the Edict of Milan in 313 AD, and over time he personally embraced the faith, though he was baptized only shortly before his death in 337. Gradually, the influence of the Christian Church grew, increasingly shaping both religious and civic life across the empire. As the Roman Empire declined, the curiales — the local elite traditionally responsible for managing civic affairs — gradually lost power and withdrew from public life. Into this vacuum stepped the bishops, who rose to become the most influential figures in their cities. Beyond their spiritual responsibilities, bishops took on civic roles: overseeing public works, supervising the construction of monuments, organizing local militias, and defending cities in times of crisis. They became not only religious leaders but also key civic administrators, effectively acting as governors and magistrates within their communities.

Profound transformations swept through the empire, eventually contributing to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD. The centuries that followed, once often labeled the “Dark Ages,” were long seen as a time shrouded in mystery, but modern scholarship continues to uncover the complexities of this early medieval period. While historical records are often fragmentary, legends, tales, and accounts of martyrs and saints offer glimpses into the religious and cultural life of the time. What is clear is that over the next four to five centuries, Christianity spread steadily throughout the region, reaching from major urban centers to the smallest villages. Many Roman cities, including Vence, became seats of Christian dioceses. According to tradition, Saint Trophimus of Arles is often credited with first bringing Christianity to Vence and its surrounding area.

According to tradition, St. Audinus became the first bishop of Vence around the year 363. Around this time, a former Roman temple dedicated to Cybele is said to have been dismantled, and the first Christian church was built on the site—possibly reusing some of the same stones. Historical records indicate that in 381, St. Eusebius, then bishop of Vence, accompanied the bishops of Arles and Nice to a council held in Aquileia.

In the early fifth century, Honoratus founded a monastery on the Lérins Islands off the coast of Cannes, a religious community that still exists today. Many of the bishops who later served in Vence are believed to have come from this influential monastic center.

Although no definitive archaeological evidence has yet been uncovered, it is widely considered likely that by the fifth century, Vence had a cathedral, a baptistery, and an episcopal palace. It is generally assumed that the cathedral occupied the site of the present-day cathedral, though this cannot be confirmed with certainty. Intricately carved architectural fragments from a Carolingian-period church (dating to the late 700s or early 800s) survive today and can still be seen incorporated into the interior walls of the current cathedral.

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The Barbarians Are At The Gate

Shortly after Christianity gained a foothold in Vence and across southern Gaul, disaster soon followed. Emperor Theodosius I died in 395 AD, and not long after, turmoil erupted across the empire. His son, Honorius, ruled the Western Empire under the protection of his father-in-law, Stilicho, who successfully repelled Alaric, king of the Visigoths, with a victory at Pollentia in 402. Yet Honorius, weak and poorly advised, ultimately allowed Stilicho to be executed — removing what many saw as Rome’s last true defense.

In 410, the Visigoths famously sacked Rome and soon pushed into southern Gaul, causing waves of destruction. Marseille resisted their advance around 413, but the region faced further instability as the Visigoths settled in parts of Gaul through the 420s and 430s. In 443, the Burgundians were officially settled in the Rhône Valley with Roman approval, and Vence, like many neighboring territories, came under the influence of their rising Christian kingdom.

One of the most important figures in the history of Vence, Saint Veranus, a former monk from the Lérins monastery, became bishop of Vence around 451. He is best remembered in local tradition for his encounter with Euric, king of the Visigoths, who, around the late 460s or early 470s, advanced into Provence, threatening cities that did not conform to his Arian Christian beliefs. Vence, its bishop, and its people remained faithful to Catholic Christianity. According to legend, Saint Veranus calmly approached Euric’s camp near the mouth of the Loup River and pleaded for mercy on behalf of his town. For reasons unknown, the Visigothic king withdrew his forces, sparing Vence. To this day, the event is regarded as one of the great miracles in the town’s history, and Saint Veranus is honored as one of its two patron saints, along with Saint Lambert.

In 476 CE, the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, Romulus Augustulus, was deposed by Odoacer, a Germanic military leader. Odoacer did not claim the imperial title but sent the imperial insignia to the Eastern Roman Emperor, Zeno, and ruled Italy as “King of Italy” under nominal Eastern authority.

Around 510, sovereignty over Provence passed to Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths, bringing Visigothic rule in the region to an end. By 536–537, Provence was incorporated into the Frankish kingdom under the Merovingian dynasty. While it is widely believed that a church stood on the site of the current cathedral in Vence during this period, no firm archaeological evidence has been found to confirm it.

In 537, Provence became part of the Frankish realm, and Vence came under Frankish rule. Around 573, the Lombards swept over the Alpes in 573 intent to destroy anything that was related to Rome: Roman bridges, theatre, columns, aqueducts, it didn’t matter. According to local tradition, Vence was sacked, and its residents sought refuge in the fortress at Saint-Laurent-de-la-Bastide atop the baou until Bishop Deuterus persuaded them to return and rebuild the town.

Around the early 700s, Muslim raiders from North Africa, known as Saracens or Moors, began threatening southern Gaul. In 732, the monastery at Lérins was attacked and largely destroyed, with tradition claiming that over five hundred monks were massacred. During these turbulent times, the people of Vence are said to have again sought refuge in the fortress at Saint-Laurent-de-la-Bastide.

While Arab-Muslim forces left a deep mark on regions like Spain, their presence in Provence was mainly limited to raids and temporary coastal footholds rather than long-term settlement. Unlike in Al-Andalus, Provence did not experience a sustained period of Arab governance, nor did it directly absorb the agricultural innovations, scientific advancements, or cultural flourishing that characterized Muslim Spain.

The Carolingian dynasty (named after Charlemagne) began consolidating its power in the 8th century and reached its peak when Charlemagne was crowned Emperor of the Romans in 800. Around this period, the old Merovingian cathedral in Vence was likely restored or rebuilt, and we have physical evidence of this Carolingian phase in the form of carved fragments now displayed on the interior walls of the current cathedral.

In 843, the Treaty of Verdun divided the Carolingian Empire among the sons of Louis the Pious, with the eldest, Lothair I, receiving the central territories, including Provence.

Meanwhile, Saracen raiders continued to threaten the region. Nice was sacked in 813, and Saracen attacks intensified between 838 and 869. By around 890–900, they had established a permanent base at Fraxinetum, from which they ravaged eastern Provence for decades; Fréjus fell to their attacks around 916.

Little is known about Vence’s fate during this turbulent period. Some historians believe its inhabitants fled to fortifications at Saint-Laurent, while others think the town was never entirely abandoned. The Saracen threat was finally crushed in 972, when William I, ruler of Provence, defeated them at Fraxinetum. The lands of eastern Provence were then divided between William and his brother Roubaud.

We have a list of bishops of Vence spanning the so-called Dark Ages, from Saint Prosper in 492 through Elie in 879, after which there is a gap of nearly two centuries. Among the recorded names are Deuthère, Fronime, Aurélien, Lieutaud, Waldène, and Witrede. However, the accuracy of these names and dates remains uncertain, as surviving historical documentation from this era is too sparse to draw firm conclusions.

See Part 2: The Middle Ages (1000 to 1450).