Carpentras

For the Renaissance composer of the same name, see Carpentras (composer).

Carpentras
Town hall
Carpentras
Location within Provence-A.-C.d'A. region  Carpentras
Administration
Country	France
Region	Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Department	Vaucluse
Arrondissement	Carpentras
Mayor	Francis Adolphe (PS) (2008–2014)
Statistics
Elevation	56–212 m (184–696 ft) (avg. 95 m or 312 ft)
Land area1	37.92 km2 (14.64 sq mi)
Population2	30,335  (2012)
- Density	800 /km2 (2,100 /sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	84031/ 84200
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Truffle Market in Carpentras.

Carpentras (Provençal Occitan: Carpentràs in classical norm or Carpentras in Mistralian norm) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

It stands on the banks of the Auzon. As capital of the Comtat Venaissin, it was frequently the residence of the Avignon popes; the Papal States retained possession of the Venaissin until the French Revolution. Nowadays, Carpentras is a commercial center for Comtat Venaissin and is famous for the truffle markets held from winter to early spring.

History

Carpentras was a commercial site used by Greek merchants in ancient times, and known to Romans at first as Carpentoracte Meminorum, mentioned by Pliny, then renamed Forum Neronis ("Forum of Nero"); the city retains an impressive Roman triumphal arch, that has been enclosed by the bishops' palace, rebuilt in 1640, now a law court, and a machicolated city gate, the Porte d'Orange.

Hôtel-Dieu in Carpentras.

It was the seat of a bishop and its Church of St. Siffrein, Gothic with some Romanesque remains, was formerly a cathedral. Pope Julius II was made the Bishop of Carpentras when he was 17. Joseph-Dominique d'Inguimbert, Bishop of Carpentras from 1735 to 1754, established a great scholarly library which Jean-François Delmas, the current chief librarian, has called "the oldest of our municipal libraries"; known as the Bibliothèque Inguimbertine and now holding around 140,000 books, it is known to bibliophiles all over France and is scheduled to move into roomier quarters in the former Hôtel-Dieu in 2013.

Carpentras has been an important center of French Judaism, and is home to the oldest synagogue in France (1367), which still holds services.

In May 1990, there was a desecration of the Jewish cemetery (see French and European Nationalist Party).

Traditions

Carpentras is famous for the Truffle market that takes place every Friday morning during the winter months.

Its traditional confectionery is the berlingot, a small hard candy with thin white stripes, originally made from the syrup left over from conservation of fruits.

Personalities

Carpentras was the birthplace of:

• Carpentras (also known as Elzéar Genet) (c.1470–1548), prominent early Renaissance composer
• Louis Archimbaud (1705–1789), composer and organist of Carpentras Cathedral
• Joseph Duplessis (1725–1802), portraitist
• Alexis-Vincent-Charles Berbiguier de Terre-Neuve du Thym, (1765–1851), author and demonologist
• François-Vincent Raspail (1794–1878), chemist, physiologist, and socialist
• Édouard Daladier (1884–1970) politician and Prime Minister of France at the start of the Second World War
• Christophe Maé(1975–), super star, musician, performer, singer, artist, and composer won many prizes in NRJ Music Award.

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

Twin towns — Sister cities

Carpentras is twinned with:

• Vevey, Switzerland
• Seesen, Germany
• Ponchatoula, Louisiana, USA
• Camaiore, Italy

See also

• Communes of the Vaucluse department

References

• INSEE

External links

• Carpentras official website (in French)
• Encyclopaedia Britannica 1911 "Carpentras"
• Pictures of Carpentras Cathedral: [2], [3]
• Pictures of Carpentras Synagogue: [4], [5], [6]