History and civilization
The area where Vence stands nowadays shows signs of occupation dating back to ancient times. And ancient really refers to inhabited caves in the Paleolithic and Neolithic. Some of them seem to have served further on as shelter for shepherds during the Bronze and Iron Ages.
- The greatest number of fortified dwellings (oppidums) were occupied at the end of the Iron Age.
- Before Augustus conquered the Alps and created the Maritime Alps district at the end of the first century B.C., Vence was under the control of the Nérusii tribe.
- Vence was officially founded as a capital city when the new era began.
- The first known Bishop of Vence is Severus, bishop in 439 and perhaps as early as 419.
- Among others are: St. Veranus, son of St. Eucherius, Archbishop of Lyon and a monk of Lérins, bishop before 451 and at least until 465; St. Lambert, first a Benedictine monk (died 1154); Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (1505-11).
- Antoine Godeau, Bishop of Grasse, was named Bishop of Vence in 1638; the Holy See wished to unite the two dioceses. Meeting with opposition from the chapter and the clergy of Vence, Godeau left Grasse in 1653, to remain Bishop of Vence, which see he held until 1672.
- The diocese of Nice now unites the three former Dioceses of Nice, Grasse and Vence.
Article retrieved from Wikipedia