Mandelieu-la-Napoule

Mandelieu-la-Napoule (French pronunciation: [mɑ̃dəljølanapul]; Occitan: Mandaluec la Napola; locally spelled Mandelieu-La Napoule) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera, just to the southwest of Cannes and northeast of Théoule-sur-Mer, it had a population of 21,772 in 2020.

Mandelieu-la-Napoule Mandaluec la Napola (Occitan)
Commune
View of Mandelieu-la-Napoule
Coat of arms
Location of Mandelieu-la-Napoule
Mandelieu-la-Napoule Show map of France Mandelieu-la-Napoule Show map of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Coordinates: 43°32′47″N 6°56′17″E
Country	France
Region	Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Department	Alpes-Maritimes
Arrondissement	Grasse
Canton	Mandelieu-la-Napoule
Intercommunality	CA Cannes Pays de Lérins
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Sébastien Leroy[1] (LR)
Area 1	31.37 km2 (12.11 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[2]	21,561
• Density	690/km2 (1,800/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	06079 /06210
Elevation	0–486 m (0–1,594 ft) (avg. 300 m or 980 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Townscape

It is known for the Château de la Napoule, a fortified castle of the 14th century. In the 20th century, Henry Clews Jr (son of the wealthy New York banker Henry Clews) and his wife Marie Clews, entirely renovated the château which they then inhabited. Henry Clews Jr was a painter and sculptor whose work still fills the castle, which is now run as a non-profit arts foundation by his descendants. The château was once an ancient foundation, then a medieval fortress of the Counts of Villeneuve. Today the Roman Tower (4th century) and the Saracen Tower (11th century) are all that remain of the château that was destroyed during the French Revolution. The château designed by the Clews has cloister, terrace overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, Gothic dining room, and studio. In the basement of a tower at the château the remains of Henry (1876–1937) and Marie (1878–1959) are interred in two tombs that Henry designed and sculpted.

Population

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 9 —     1800 33 +20.40% 1806 29 −2.13% 1821 89 +7.76% 1831 78 −1.31% 1836 111 +7.31% 1841 256 +18.19% 1846 305 +3.56% 1851 433 +7.26% 1856 334 −5.06% 1861 495 +8.19% 1866 423 −3.09% 1872 455 +1.22% 1876 423 −1.81% 1881 714 +11.04% 1886 835 +3.18% 1891 779 −1.38% 1896 984 +4.78%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 1,695 +11.49% 1906 1,260 −5.76% 1911 1,517 +3.78% 1921 1,723 +1.28% 1926 2,376 +6.64% 1931 2,343 −0.28% 1936 2,342 −0.01% 1946 2,378 +0.15% 1954 2,962 +2.78% 1962 3,981 +3.77% 1968 6,124 +7.44% 1975 9,535 +6.53% 1982 14,283 +5.94% 1990 16,493 +1.81% 1999 17,870 +0.89% 2007 20,621 +1.81% 2012 22,714 +1.95% 2017 22,452 −0.23%
Source: EHESS[3] and INSEE (1968–2017)[4]

Transportation

Private air transportation for the town (and for nearby Cannes) is provided by Cannes - Mandelieu Airport. The nearest major airport is Nice Cote d'Azur Airport, the second busiest airport in France; it is about 30 minutes drive from the airport to the town. The commune is reached from exit 41 on the autoroute A8. Mandelieu-la-Napoule station is served by regional trains (TER Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur) towards Fréjus, Cannes, Nice and Les Arcs–Draguignan.^[5][6]

Personalities

It is the home of ex MI6 agent Richard Tomlinson.

Bertrand of Orléans-Braganza was born in Mandelieu on 2 February 1941. He is the present head of the Vassouras Branch of the Brazilian Imperial House and de jure Emperor of Brazil (Bertrand I of Brazil). He is also considered a royal prince of the deposed monarchies of France and Portugal. His late brother Luiz of Orléans-Braganza was also born there three years before.

Italian Princess Maria Francesca of Savoy, daughter of the King of Italy Victor Emmanuel III and Queen Elena of Montenegro, lived in Mandelieu and died there on 7 December 2001.

Italian athlete Eddy Ottoz was born in Mandelieu on 3 June 1944. He competed for Italy in the 1964 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, Japan and in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico, where he won the bronze medal in the 110 metre hurdles event.

Gallery

• 
  Château de la Napoule
• 
  Viaduct and Port de la Rague, with Théoule-sur-Mer in the background
• 
  Aerial view of Mandelieu
• 
  View of La Napoule

References

1. "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 6 June 2023.
2. "Populations légales 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
3. Des villages de Cassini aux communes d'aujourd'hui: Commune data sheet Mandelieu-la-Napoule, EHESS (in French).
4. Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
5. Rechercher une fiche horaire, TER Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, accessed 16 May 2022.
6. La carte du réseau TER SUD, TER Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, accessed 16 May 2022.

External links

• Official web site
• Official tourism Website: in French, in English
• Map of Mandelieu-La Napoule (PDF)
• Mandelieu-La Napoule Exhibition-Congress Centre