Saint Tropez - City of France

Saint-Tropez is a commune of the Var département in southern France , located on the French Riviera. Although it is known today for its famous and wealthy guests, its history with the iconic Brigitte Bardot, and its role in the liberation of Southern France in World War II, this commune has a long history.

The town’s name derives from that of an early, semi-legendary martyr named Saint Torpes. His legend states that he was beheaded at Pisa during the reign of Nero, and that his body was placed in a rotten boat with a rooster and a dog. The body landed at the present-day location of the town.

The captain had the privilege of raising a standing army, which drove away a fleet of Spanish galleons in 1637. Les Bravades des Espagnols is a local religious and military celebration commemorating this victory of the Tropezian militia over the Spanish.

The area was not taxed or levied by the French government during this time. However, this privilege was abrogated by King Louis XIV, who reasserted French control over the city.

The mission of the Japanese samurai Hasekura Tsunenaga, en route to Rome, visited Saint-Tropez in September 1615, in what is known as the first instance of Franco-Japanese relations.

The father of Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez was marquis de Saint-Tropez.

In the 1920s Saint-Tropez attracted international stars from the world of fashion.

During World War II, on August 15, 1944, it was the central site of a beach landing in Operation Dragoon, the Allied invasion of southern France. After the war it became the French existentialists' summer retreat.

But it was in the 1950s — partly thanks to Brigitte Bardot — that Saint-Tropez received international recognition and exposure through such films as Et Dieu... créa la femme.

Tropezien beaches are located along the coast in the Baie de Pampelonne also know by the residents as Grania , which lies south of Saint-Tropez and east of Ramatuelle. Pampelonne offers a collection of beaches along its five kilometre shore. Each beach is around thirty metres wide with its own beach hut and private or public tanning area.