Calvi (; ; ; ) is a '' commune'' in the

Haute-Corse Haute-Corse (; , or ; ) is a department of France, consisting of the northern part of the island of Corsica. The corresponding departmental territorial collectivity merged with that of Corse-du-Sud on 1 January 2018, forming the single ter ...

department of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

on the island of

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

. It is the seat of the Canton of Calvi, which contains Calvi and one other ''commune'', Lumio. Calvi is also the capital of the Arrondissement of Calvi, which contains, besides the Canton of Calvi, three other cantons:

L'Île-Rousse L'Île-Rousse (; , , or , ; , ; ) is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France on the island of Corsica. It was founded in 1758 by Pasquale Paoli to create a port that would not be in the hands of the Genoese (such as Calvi). As ...

, Belgodère, and Calenzana. According to legend,

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

supposedly came from Calvi, which at the time was part of the Genoese Empire. Because the often subversive elements of the island gave its inhabitants a bad reputation, he would have been expected to mask his exact birthplace.

Geography

Calvi is located on the northwest coast of the island of

, from

Bastia Bastia ( , , , ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, department of Haute-Corse, Corsica, France. It is located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It also has the second-highest popu ...

and from

. It is the fifth-largest commune in Corsica; however, the arrondissement is the smallest.

Climate

Calvi has a

hot-summer mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Csa''). The average annual temperature in Calvi is . The average annual rainfall is with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in February, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Calvi was on 29 July 1983; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 30 January 1963.

History

Calvi was founded in the 13th century. Its motto, "''Calvi semper fidelis''" ("Calvi Always Faithful"), referred originally to its loyalty to the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Maritime republics, maritime republic from the years 1099 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italy, Italian coast. During the Late Middle Ages, it was a major commercial power in ...

, which instated there a closed city centre (''préside'') in 1278, and built a new castle in 1491 to face new

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

technologies. The motto originates from 1553 when Calvi repulsed two attacks by the French and Turks, aided by Corsican exiles. In 1555 it was sacked by Dragut Reis and his

Barbary pirates The Barbary corsairs, Barbary pirates, Ottoman corsairs, or naval mujahideen (in Muslim sources) were mainly Muslim corsairs and privateers who operated from the largely independent Barbary states. This area was known in Europe as the Barba ...

. During the war with Revolutionary France, British forces under Admiral Nelson and Lieutenant-General Charles Stuart captured the city in the

Siege of Calvi The siege of Calvi was a combined British and Corsican military operation during the Invasion of Corsica in the early stages of the French Revolutionary Wars. The Corsican people had risen up against the French garrison of the island in 1793, ...

in 1794. It was during the bombardment of Calvi that Nelson sustained the injury that cost him his eye. The town was retaken by Corsicans the following year.

Population

Economy

The economy of Calvi is essentially based on summer

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

, which started in 1950 due to the pioneering efforts of Vladimir Raitz. Calvi is also home to the French Foreign Legions Second Foreign Parachute Regiment (2 REP), and relies heavily on the sustained business with their base, Camp Raffalli and its inhabitants.

Transport

Calvi is served by the international Calvi - Sainte-Catherine Airport, the Xavier Colonna Port, and a metre-gauge

railway line Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...

and Ponte-Leccia, connecting with the main line

Ajaccio Ajaccio (, , ; French language, French: ; or ; , locally: ; ) is the capital and largest city of Corsica, France. It forms a communes of France, French commune, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Corse-du-Sud, and head o ...

Monuments

* Tour du Sel and the citadel * Église Sainte-Marie de Calvi

References

External links

Official website
File:Calvi Port 1.jpg, The port citadel viewed from the port File:Corsica-calvi-panorama.jpg, The port, panoramic view from the

Citadel A citadel is the most fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of ''city'', meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. ...

File:Depuis la Serra.jpg, Calvi panorama File:Calvi West.JPG, Calvi viewed from the sea {{authority control Communes of Haute-Corse Haute-Corse communes articles needing translation from French Wikipedia Subprefectures in France Mediterranean port cities and towns in France