The Maddalena Pass (
Italian: ''Colle della Maddalena''
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
: ''Col de Larche'', historically ''Col de l'Argentière'') (elevation 1996 m.) is a high
mountain pass
A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...
between the
Cottian Alps and the
Maritime Alps
The Maritime Alps (french: Alpes Maritimes ; it, Alpi Marittime ) are a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps. They form the border between the regions of France, French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur and the regions of Italy ...
, located on the border between
Italy and
France. It connects
Barcelonnette
Barcelonnette (; oc, Barciloneta de Provença, also ; obsolete it, Barcellonetta) is a commune of France and a subprefecture in the department of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. It is located in the southern ...
in France with
Cuneo in Italy. Its French name ''Col de Larche'' refers to the village
Larche on its northwestern side.
Under its earlier name, Col de l'Argentière it has historically linked
Lyon with Italy; the Col de l'Argentière was in the possession of the
house of Savoy
The House of Savoy ( it, Casa Savoia) was a royal dynasty that was established in 1003 in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, the family grew in power from ruling a small Alpine county north-west of Italy to absolute rule of ...
from 1388 to 1713, offering an easy route between Piedmont and its outlying valley of Barcelonnette, which came into Savoyard possession in 1388, when
Amadeus VI of Savoy
Amadeus VI (4 January 1334 – 1 March 1383), nicknamed the Green Count ( it, Il Conte Verde) was Count of Savoy from 1343 to 1383. He was the eldest son of Aymon, Count of Savoy, and Yolande Palaeologina of Montferrat. Though he started unde ...
purchased it for the sum of 60,000 ecus,
[W. A. B. Coolidge, "The Passages of the Alps in 1518" ''The English Historical Review'' 30 No. 120 (October 1915:681-691) pp 687-88, 690.] it was of such strategic and commercial importance.
A few hundred metres from the pass, on its Italian side, is the
Lago della Maddalena, which is the source of the
Stura di Demonte, an important tributary of the
Tanaro.
See also
*
List of highest paved roads in Europe
*
List of mountain passes
References
External links
Profile on climbbybike.com
Mountain passes of the Alps
Mountain passes of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Mountain passes of Piedmont
Province of Cuneo
France–Italy border crossings
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