Hyères

Hyères, like many cities on the riviera, played a role during World War II, when Operation Dragoon brought allied forces to the shores of the French Mediterranean. Unlike its neighbors, however, Hyères retains a large English influence today, both from World War II and from previous English inhabitants, which makes it an interesting and distinctive riviera city.

The British

The first British person of note to reside in Hyères was the British ambassador in 1767, but it was not until the 1788 and 1789 visits of the Prince of Wales that the city truly became popular with the British. After this visit, the British population boomed until the Napoleonic period, when the majority of these expats returned home until the early 19th century.

Many of the Brits who decided to move or spend their winters in Hyères did so because of its temperate climate: because of its position on the Mediterranean, Hyères enjoys relatively warm winters; Brits suffering from ill health were often told by their physicians to spend their winters here. Today, this weather draws a large tourist population through the winter months, and the presence of multiple palm trees is both a tribute to this weather and an identifying factor of this city, sometimes referred to as Hyères les Palmiers?Hyères of the palm trees.

Literature

During the period following the British interest in Hyères, the city began to feature in several literary works by British figures. Some of these include Celestina by Charlotte Turner Smith and The Rover by Joseph Conrad. Robert Louis Stevenson and Edith Wharton also spent a significant portion of their time living and writing in the city, and Stevenson especially wrote passages dedicated to the city and the time he spent there. The presence of these literary figures has inspired tourism by literary buffs, even into recent years.

World War II and the Islands

The British presence in Hyères was so strong into the beginning of the 20th century that signs around the city were printed in both English and French?and this was long before the bilingual signs that dot major European cities today. There were also two English churches in the city. While these churches are no longer used by the English-speaking population, the buildings still exist and are opened to the public: All Saint's Church and Saint Paul's English Church.

Operation Dragoon took place on August 15th 1944. The maneouver was intended to take control of the islands off the coast of Hyères, which were under the control of the German army at the time. The allied forces came ashore right near Hyères in order to accomplish this. The Hyères islands of Port-Cros, Levant and Porquerolles were taken over entirely by August 22nd, when both the allied US and Canadian forces as well as the French and Senegalese infantry had taken German prisoners and control of the islands.

Today, these islands form a part of the city of Hyères. They are located just offshore of the main city and are opened to visits from the public.