Salon-de-Provence, town (1990 pop. 35,041), Bouches-du-Rhône dept., SE France. Its major manufactures are olive oil, petroleum products, coffee, and soap. In the town are churches dating from the 12th to the 14th cent. It has been the site of the French air force academy since 1936.

Provence, region and former province, SE France. It now encompasses Var, Vaucluse, and Bouches-du-Rhône depts. and (in part) Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and Alpes-Maritimes depts. Nice, Marseilles, Toulon, Avignon, Arles, and Aix-en-Provence (the historic capital) are the chief cities. The fertile valley of the Rhône and the French Riviera produce fruits and vegetables (citrus fruits, olive oil, mulberry trees). Cattle are raised in the Camargue. The startling scenery has inspired such painters as Cézanne and Renoir. There are many old towns and historic remains. The coastal strip was settled c.600 B.C. by Greeks; Phoenician merchants also settled there, and in the 2d cent. B.C. the Romans established colonies. A part of Narbonensis (see Gaul), Provence was the oldest of the Roman possessions beyond the Alps; it took its name from Provincia, meaning province. Christianity was implanted very early, and by the 4th cent. the area was a haven for monasteries. It was invaded by the Visigoths (5th cent.), the Franks (6th cent.), and the Arabs (8th cent.), who were repelled by Charles Martel. But Roman institutions continued to have a profound cultural influence. The Provençal language was the standard literary idiom throughout S France in the Middle Ages and is used by some Provençal writers today (see langue d'oc and langue d'oïl; Provençal literature). In 879 the count of Arles established the kingdom of Cisjurane Burgundy, or Provence, which in 933 was united with Transjurane Burgundy to form the Kingdom of Arles (see Arles, kingdom of). The major part of Provence, held by the house of Aragón, passed (1246) to the Angevin dynasty of Naples through marriage, and under the Angevins the towns became virtually independent republics. King René left Provence to his nephew, Charles of Maine, who left it to the French crown (1486). Orange was added in 1672; Avignon and the Comtat Venaissin in 1791; and Nice and Menton in 1860.

Eleanor of Provence, d. 1291, queen consort of Henry III of England. The daughter of Raymond Berengar, count of Provence, she was married to Henry in 1236. She was a vigorous and incisive woman and had much influence on her husband, as did her unpopular relatives and other foreign courtiers who followed her to England. During the ascendancy of Simon de Montfort in 1264-65, Eleanor raised mercenaries in France for her husband's cause. She was dispatched to a convent in 1286 but was sometimes consulted by her son, Edward I.

Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, department (1990 pop. 132,400), SE France; formerly Basses-Alpes dept. Digne is the capital.

Aix-en-Provence, city (1990 pop. 126,854), Bouches-du-Rhône dept., in Provence, SE France. It is a commercial center in an area producing olives, grapes, and almonds. Its manufactures include food products, wine-making equipment, and electrical apparatus. Founded (123 B.C.) by the Romans near the site of mineral springs, it has long been a popular spa. There, in 102 B.C., Marius defeated the Teutons. It became an archiepiscopal see in the 5th cent. It has been the capital of Provence since the 12th cent. (except when replaced by Arles), and passed with Provence to the crown in 1487, becoming the seat of a provincial parlement. A music center since the 11th cent. and a focus of Provençal literature, Aix has a university (founded 1409; recently combined with one at Marseilles). A notable structure is the Cathedral of Saint-Sauveur (13th-14th cent.). A picturesque town, Aix has become a favorite sojourn for painters. An opera festival is held each summer. Cézanne was born and died there.

Historical, cultural, and governmental region, southeast-coastal France. Provence was part of Roman Gallia Transalpina. With the breakdown of the Roman Empire in the late 5th century, Provence was invaded successively by the Visigoths, Burgundians, and Ostrogoths. It came under the rule of the Franks circa 536. During the 13th century it was involved in the Albigensian Crusade. It was united with the French crown in 1481. The language of Provence, Provençal, was important in medieval literature, and Provence's Romanesque architecture was an outstanding cultural achievement of the Middle Ages. The region suffered in the 16th-century Wars of Religion. In 1790, during the French Revolution, it lost its political institutions and was divided into several départements. The historical region of Provence is roughly coextensive with the present-day région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (pop., 2003 est.: 4,665,051), which has an area of 12,124 sq mi (31,400 sq km); its capital is Marseille.

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City (pop., 1999: 134,222), southeastern France. Founded as a military colony by the Romans circa 123 BC, it was the scene of the defeat of the Teutons by Marius in 102 BC. Visigoths, Franks, Lombards, and finally Muslim invaders from Spain successively plundered the town. As the capital of Provence, it was a centre of culture during the Middle Ages; it became part of France in 1486. It is now a residential suburb of Marseille; its industries include tourism, food processing, and the manufacturing of electrical machinery.

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