Saint-Cannat (; oc, Sant Canat) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes 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 Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

History

The village was named after

Canus Natus Canus Natus was a French Saint in the fifth century. Early life Canus Natus was born in the fifth century.Christophe de Villeneuve-Bargemon, ''Statistique du département des Bouches-du-Rhône'', Ricard, 1824, p. 95/ref> He was white-haired upo ...

, a fifth century Roman Catholic Saint, who was a Roman clergyman born with white hair, a quirk synonymous with great wisdom at the time.official website
He was buried in Saint-Cannat, although there was no such place at the time, but soon enough several houses were built into a hamlet. In the twelfth century, Archbishop Pierre mentioned, 'Castrum Santi - Cannati' in a paper. In the thirteenth century, villagers turned on their archbishop and pledged allegiance to the Lord of the

Baux-de-Provence Les Baux-de-Provence (; oc, label=Provençal dialect, Provençal, Lei Bauç de Provença), commonly called Baux, is a Communes of France, commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regio ...

, and then to the Kings of

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

(namely, Frederic III of Aragon, or perhaps Louis XIII). This, however, only lasted three years. In the same century, the

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

established a settlement there.

Pierre André de Suffren Admiral comte Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez, bailli de Suffren (17 July 1729 – Paris, 8 December 1788), Château de Saint-Cannat) was a French Navy officer and admiral. Beginning his career during the War of the Austrian Successi ...

was born here on 17 July 1729. A century later,

Alphonse Tavernier Alphonse Tavernier (1852–1933) was a French painter and Provençal poet. Early life Alphone Tavernier was born on November 27, 1852 in Saint-Cannat Saint-Cannat (; oc, Sant Canat) is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in south ...

, a poet, was born here on 27 November 1852. On June 11, 1909, a terrible earthquake destroyed almost everything. Shortly after, the houses were re-built in the same architectural style. Both in 1984 and 1994 huge floods ravaged most houses. It has retained several fountains dating back to the 17th and 18th century, the remains of the medieval ramparts and the chateau, which today houses the town hall and museum. The

Route nationale 7 The Route nationale 7, or ''RN 7'', is a trunk road ( nationale) in France between Paris and the border with Italy. It was also known as ''Route des vacances'' (The Holiday Route), ''Route bleue'' (The Blue Route), and — sarcastically, duri ...

bisects the village. There is a

polo Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit a small hard ...

club, ''Polo Club de Saint Cannat'', opened in the 1970s. It organizes the Open d'Aix and the Tournoi de Noel every year. There is also an entertainment park called ''Village des automates''. It is also home to the

winery A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, ...

Château de Beaupré Château de Beaupré is a French bastide, vineyard and winery in Saint-Cannat, Bouches-du-Rhône, France.Dominique Auzias, Jean-Paul Labourdette, ''Tourisme et vignoble en France'', Petit Futé, 2010, p. 66/ref>''Petit Futé Aix en provence, pays Ai ...

, started by Baron Emile Double (1869-1938) in 1890.History
/ref> The creek Budéou flows through the village.

History

Population

Gallery

References

External links