History Of Avignon

Pre Chirstian to Middle Ages

Avignon in the south of France is a culturally-rich city, which owes much to a history known for being both long and highly tumultuous. While Avignon’s early history can be traced to before Christ, it is the period of the popes from 1376 to 1409 that marks the city’s most notable and significant period.

The history books tell us that the Avignon region saw settlers as early as 4000 BC, when a tribe known as the Chaseens set up home on the Rocher des Doms. Two thousand years later, the Chalcalithic and Campaniforme civilisations are known to have settled here, while later in 500 BC, the Cavares tribe moved in and expanded the region around the clifftop oppidum. Over 400 years later in the 2nd century BC, the city gained the name Avenio, meaning ‘Lord of the River’ in Celtic, or ‘City of the Violent Wind’ in Ligurian. Avenio later evolved into Avignon.

From the early Anno Domini years up to the 14th century, various events further shaped the development of the city, with acquisition of commune status in 1129, the  construction of Pont St-Bénézet from 1177 to 1185 and the seige by Louis VIII in 1226 among the most significant.

The period of the popes

The early 14th century marked the beginning of the period in which the city became the official residence of six successive popes (Clement V, Jean XXXII, Benoit XII, Clement VI, Innocent VI and Urban V). This period is viewed as historically important from the perspective that Rome was forced to take a drop in status and was considered no longer viable at the seat of the papacy. This period also marked a significant swelling in the city’s population, with censuses declaring some 40,000 inhabitants, a figure that dropped to around 15,000 following the devastating effects of the plague.

The period from 1379 to 1409 is known as the Great Schism and saw another troubled era in the city’s history. The election of an Italian pope following the death of Gregory XI created a split among Catholics, as several cardinals rejected his instatement and reassembled to elect a new pope - Clement VII, who took the seat in Avignon in 1379. Catholics were divided on their support of the respective popes and distinct areas of allegiance arose across Europe. The Great Schism lasted until 1409 when Benoit XIII, Clement VII's successor, lost the support of his people and became a prisoner in the Pope’s Palace for five years until opportunity presented itself and he escaped and fled into hiding.

French Revolution and beyond

During the French Revolution, the city saw troubled times as it fought to be integrated as part of France. On two occasions in 1790, the National Assembly refused to ratify annexation of the city and agitation increased to the extent that a civil war ensued between revolutionary Avignon and papist Venaissin.

Things settled with the arrival of Napoleon as ruler and the turn of the century saw Avignon’s political significance wane; however, the success of the silk and madder root trade ensured that it remained the economic capital of the region. Later with the arrival of rail as a form of transportation, the region became France’s principal provider of fresh market goods.

The arrival of the 20th century brought devastation to the city once again in the form of the two World Wars, with WWI seeing some 1,200 fatalities and WWII seeing occupation by the Nazis. Bombings in the latter conflict caused 450 deaths, 1,200 casualties and 3,000 disasters, and lasted until the city was liberated by Franco-American troops on the 25th of August, 1944.

Following the war, the city recovered quickly and saw a period of rapid economic growth right up until the 1970s. Tourism became established as an important industry and the city’s reputation as a cultural centre began to spread across the globe with consolidation occurring in 2000 via its election as a European City of Culture.