Pont-de-Crau is a village of 3,200 inhabitants within the municipality of

Arles Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of ...

, in the

Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...

department, France. It is named after the bridge/aqueduct that was built circa 1585 to carry the

Canal de Craponne The Canal de Craponne, Craponne canal, is a canal in the Pélissanne commune of the Bouches-du-Rhône department of France. It was originally conceived and built between 1554 and 1559 by the engineer Adam de Craponne to bring fresh water 25km from ...

across the fetid swamps south east of the city.

History

In 1554

Adam de Craponne Adam de Craponne (; 1526–1576) was a French engineer. He built the eponymous Canal de Craponne to irrigate the ''Désert de la Crau''. He was poisoned while fortifying Nantes for King Henry III of France during the French Wars of Religion Earl ...

began an irrigation project, building the

from the river

Durance The Durance (; ''Durença'' in the Occitan classical norm or ''Durènço'' in the Mistralian norm) is a major river in Southeastern France. A left tributary of the Rhône, it is long. Its drainage basin is .Salon-de-Provence Salon-de-Provence (, ; oc, label= Provençal Occitan, Selon de Provença/Seloun de Provènço, ), commonly known as Salon, is a commune located about northwest of Marseille in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d' ...

. In 1581 the Ravel brothers began to extend the canal to

, traversing the arid plain of

Crau The Crau is the ancient confluence of the Durance and Rhône, and constitutes their vast flat alluvial fan. Agriculture The Crau is composed of two different parts: The dry Crau is in the south, and has been used as pasture from Roman times. Th ...

. The project was sanctioned by

Robert de Montcalm The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, councillor of king

Henry III of France Henry III (french: Henri III, né Alexandre Édouard; pl, Henryk Walezy; lt, Henrikas Valua; 19 September 1551 – 2 August 1589) was King of France from 1574 until his assassination in 1589, as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of ...

and president of his court at the

Parliament of Aix-en-Provence The Parliament of Aix-en-Provence was the provincial ''parlement'' of Provence from 1501 to 1790. It was headquartered in Aix-en-Provence, which served as the ''de facto'' capital of Provence. History The region of Provence became a member of the ...

. De Montcalm used his own money to purchase a two-ninths share of the Arles-Canal de Craponne project, which was confirmed by an act of August 29, 1583. In 1584, the associates built the Pont-de-Crau, a bridge and aqueduct to cross a fetid foul water swamp south east of Arles. This was significant cost and was commenced on 22 August 1585. Two consuls of Arles had opposed the project and energised a following among the local population, so De Montcalm summoned them to appear before the Parliament of Aix in November 1585, but he died on 20 October 1585, before the hearing.http://provence-historique.mmsh.univ-aix.fr/Pdf/PH-1958-08-031_03.pdf PDF Robert de Montcalm et le financement du Canal de Craponne, by Albert Waton-Chabert.

Administration and Services

The public services and amenities of Pont de Crau include two schools and a stadium. The students of the hamlet begin their studies at the kindergarten ''La Claire-Fontaine'', a subsidiary of the Academy of Aix-Marseille. It has 129 children. Report on 'La Claire Fontaine' kindergarten
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Economic activity

Shops include a pharmacy, a bakery, a tobacconist, coffee shop, grocery store, three hair salons, a pizzeria, a caterer, and a beautician.

References

{{coord, 43.665078, 4.647588, format=dms, display=title Arles Geography of Bouches-du-Rhône Tourist attractions in Bouches-du-Rhône Transport infrastructure completed in 1585