Le Lavandou (; ) is a seaside commune in the Var department in the

Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (commonly shortened to PACA), also known as Région Sud, is one of the eighteen Regions of France, administrative regions of France, located at the far southeastern point of the Metropolitan France, mainland. The main P ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

in Southeastern

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 ...

. Le Lavandou derives its name either from the flower

lavender ''Lavandula'' (common name lavender) is a genus of 47 known species of perennial flowering plants in the sage family, Lamiaceae. It is native plant, native to the Old World, primarily found across the drier, warmer regions of the Mediterranean ...

(''lavanda'' in Provençal) that is prevalent in the area, or more prosaically from the local form of the

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language, spoken in parts o ...

name for

lavoir A lavoir (, wash-house) is a public place set aside for the washing of clothes. Communal washing places were common in Europe until industrial washing was introduced, and this process in turn was replaced by domestic washing machines and by s ...

, ''lavandor'' (for ''lavador'', a public place for washing clothes). The (then) village is where the famous popular song

A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" is a British romantic popular song written in 1939 and published in 1940, with lyrics by Eric Maschwitz and music by Manning Sherwin. Setting Berkeley Square is a large leafy square in Mayfair, a part ...

was written in the summer of 1939. The words were by

Eric Maschwitz Albert Eric Maschwitz Order of the British Empire, OBE (10 June 1901 – 27 October 1969), sometimes credited as Holt Marvell, was an English entertainer, writer, editor, broadcaster and broadcasting executive. Life and work Born in Edgbaston, ...

and the music by Manning Sherwin, with its title ‘stolen’ from a story by

Michael Arlen Michael Arlen (born Dikran Sarkis Kouyoumdjian;, , 16 November 1895 – 23 June 1956) was an essayist, short story writer, novelist, playwright, and scriptwriter. He had his greatest successes in the 1920s while living and writing in England, ...

. The song had its first performance in a local bar, where the melody was played on piano by Manning Sherwin with the help of the resident saxophonist. Maschwitz sang the words while holding a glass of wine, but nobody seemed impressed. In the spring of 2002, an attempt was made to find the bar where this classic song was first performed with the view to having a blue plaque set up. With the help of the local tourist office, elderly residents were questioned, but it proved impossible to establish the venue. In September 2000, the mayor passed an unusual bylaw making it illegal to die in the town. The mayor described his own bylaw as "absurd ... to counter an absurd situation"; the "absurd situation" was that with the town's cemetery already full, a court in Nice had denied permission for a new cemetery because it would mar the beauty of the selected site. After the fall of nobility the title of Duke of Lavandou was passed on the Governor of Provence and Languedoc, and from there by primogeniture to the Duchess of Gandia. Fun fact, she married Lev Obolensky in 1980 and had a son Arnaud Henry Salas-Perez, Prince Obolensky, who became Duke of andia, Languedoc and Lavandou, making a Russian Prince the title holder for le Lavandou.

Demographics

Twin towns – sister cities

Le Lavandou has been twinned with

Kronberg Kronberg im Taunus (, ) is a town in the Hochtaunuskreis district, Hesse, Germany and part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. Before 1866, it was in the Duchy of Nassau; in that year the whole Duchy was absorbed into Prussia. Kronberg lies ...

, Germany since 1973.

Events

* Lavandou Flower Parade * Saint-Pierre festival * Romérage * Summer season concerts * Halloween , Fall Festival

Beaches

Beach Cavaliere Beach Saint-Clair * L'Anglade * La Grande Plage du Lavandou * Saint-Clair * La Fossette * Aiguebelle * l'Eléphant * Jean Blanc * Rossignol * Le Layet * Cavalière * Cap Nègre * Pramousquier

References

External links