BIARRITZ
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A little history of Biarritz
The history of Biarritz, a discreet little Basque fishing village, is very old. The fame of Biarritz, a seaside town of international notoriety, is more recent. The birth of the city dates back to the second half of the 19th century, when Napoleon III and Empress Eugenie, the crowned heads of Europe and wealthy families of the time made this wild site one of the most famous destinations where is fashionable to have a residence. The beautiful residences of Biarritz testify to a glorious past where a wealthy society developed a sometimes unbridled taste for fantasy and exuberance.
In the 1920s, Biarritz was booming and tourism was developing. A regionalist architecture emerges, mixing the comfort of beautiful bourgeois villas with the specificities of the local architecture which constitutes the originality of the neo-Basque style which develops in Biarritz. At the same time, Art Deco made its appearance: the Municipal Casino, the Town Hall and the Plaza Hotel are the witnesses. At the bend of a street, at the end of an avenue, we discover villas where Art Nouveau, Art Deco or even Basque or even Norman neo-regionalism mingle. This astonishing architectural variety characterizes the identity of the city and gives it its charm.
Source: City of BIARRITZ – Area for the Enhancement of Architecture and Heritage (AVAP)
Exceptional land and coast
Biarritz is a land of encounters, marriages and political arrangements: kings, emperors, princes, high‐ranking men, maharajas…presidents of the Republic and ministers have contributed to forging history there, the consequences of which can be assessed. at the World level. To receive, it was necessary to remain in the ostentation; this is what the city councilors from Biarritz and great personalities grasped, after the fall of the empire and after the wars, to meet the challenges of exceptional hospitality.
The presence of great characters led to the arrival of artists; a movement that has grown over time, and has continued from the Roaring Twenties to the present day; because it was necessary to "entertain"; entertainment opened the doors to creation. Much of the development of modern art was revealed in Biarritz: fashion, painting, theater and mainly dance and music. characterizes the identity of the city and gives it its charm.
Source: City of BIARRITZ – Area for the Enhancement of Architecture and Heritage (AVAP)