Frejus | French Riviera Frejus
Its neighbour Saint Raphaël, Var, effectively forming one town. The north of the commune forms part of the Estérel Massif. It is a medieval city as well as a popular seaside resort. Created by the Romans Frejus attracts many tourists because of its history, cultural and artistic qualities, its well kept beaches, the sea and sporting facilities.
It went on to become one of the most important ports in the Mediterranean, until the Pax Romana, by denying Forum Julii its military activity, marked the beginning of its decline. The decadence of Rome naturally led to that of the city. The sea encroached on the land while invasions by the Saracens and pirates left the monuments in ruin. By the 10th century there was very little left of the colony, mostly rubble. Sea-borne silt clogged up the port and led to the formation of a huge swampy plain, which then separated the village from the sea. Note: in fact it is Fréjus but the "system" doesn't accept our French é, so it will be Frejus sometimes! Sorry for the bother.  Back to top.
High-speed ride on the Port!   (Please click on the Play Button above and be patient, the video may take a minute to load. It is hosted on You Tube.) Malpasset Dam   (Please click on the Play Button above and be patient, the video may take a minute to load. It is hosted on You Tube.)  Back to top.
The church of Saint Maximinus, begun towards the end of the 13th century by Charles II of Sicily and completed by the end of the 15th century. It is a relevant example of pointed architecture in the south of France. The head of Saint Mary Magdalen is honoured here, and the crypt contains tombs which date from the first centuries of the Christian Era.
Forum Julii still has a lot of its ruins and an exceptional archaeological value. There's the Roman Amphitheatre, arcades of the Oree Gate, and remains of the Aqueduct arches. There is also the Cathedral, Chapel Jean Cocteau, Aurelienne's villa and Aurelien's park. The rhythm and mood still lives on today with many exhibitions, theatre and classical music events. Also keeping up with its many traditions and artistic qualities. The city organizes throughout the year different fairs. There's the pottery fair and the Bravade (street market bargains) in and amongst its Roman and Gothic architecture, the "old tile" roof tops and tinted walls. Everything blends in nicely with the recently developed port, its neo palladium design and carefully selected colours of Provence gives its unique identity.
The most recommended walk is to see the famous "Malpasset" dam, which in 1959 burst and partly destroyed the town uprooting everything in its passage. Nowadays right along the length of the dam remains, you can find all sorts of Mediterranean flora: Heather, Pine, Oak and wild Strawberry trees (Arbousiers).  Back to top.
Frejus is a sound bet if you have kids to entertain with its number of activity centres in the vicinity designed specially for them. If you can't find what you are looking for in Frejus, there are many other attractions not too far away.
Malpasset was an arch dam on the Reyran River, constructed approximately 7 km north of Frejus. It collapsed on December 2nd, 1959, killing 421 people in the resulting flood. Various sources indicate death numbers of 361, 400, 423, 429 or 510. The damage amounted to 62 € million.
The dam was breached on December 2, 1959, at 9:13 pm. The entire wall collapsed, and only a few blocks remained on the right bank. Even today, there are still pieces of the dam scattered in the area. The breach created a water flood wall 40 meters high and moving at 70 km/h, destroying two small villages - Malpasset and Bozon, the highway construction site, and in 20 minutes reaching Frejus, still standing 3 meters high. Various small roads and railroad tracks were destroyed as well, water flooding western half of Frejus and finally reaching the sea.  Back to top.
Rain continued, and dam guardian wanted to open discharge valves. The authorities refused, claiming highway construction site was in danger of flooding water. Five hours before the breach, at 6:00 pm, water release valves were opened, but with discharge rate of 40 m³/s, it was not enough to empty the dam in time.  Back to top.
Malpasset is pronounced the same in French as mal passer, which means "go badly" or "go wrong".In August 2005, Demoscene group Farbrausch released a demo titled Malpasset (fr-047), which featured a slideshow of Malpasset dam photographs and a chilling soundtrack.The video is above.  Back to top.
The diocese of Frejus was an ecclesiastical territory in France. In 1957 it was renamed as the Diocese of Frejus-Toulon. A suffragan of the Archbishopric of Aix, it comprised the whole département of Var. It was suppressed by the Concordat of 1801, re-established by that of 1817, and definitively established in 1823.
The arrondissement of Grasse, which until 1860 belonged to the "département" of Var. It was annexed to the of the Alpes-Maritimes in 1886, separated from Frejus and attached to the diocese of Nice. A Papal Brief of 1852 authorized the bishop to assume the title of Bishop of Frejus and Toulon. The present diocese comprises the territory of the ancient Diocese of Frejus as well as that of the ancient diocese of Toulon. Back to top.
The town is twinned with:
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 Frejus provencal market virtual tour (and other different locations on the French Riviera)  .Virtual tours courtesy of VRMAG Project for this page. Back to top.
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Malpasset Dam 
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