The Greco-Roman enclosure of Antibes is a fortification probably built during late antiquity, although its origins date back partly to the Greek period. The best preserved remains, such as the Tourrac (angle tower) and the Porte de l'Orme (lined by two semi-circular towers), suggest a Roman construction in the third century, perhaps on Greek foundations of the third century BC. The excavations revealed elements of courtine along the sea, east side, confirming the ancient route reused during medieval and modern reshuffles.
Antibes, founded under the name Antipolis by the Phoceans of Marseilles between the Fifth and Fourth centuries BC, was a strategic counter thanks to its protected rade. The city, first Greek, passed under Roman rule after the defeat of the Ligures in -154 by consul Quintus Opimius. Strabon described it as italiot (of Latin law) before the Christian era, marking progressive Romanization. The great invasions pushed the inhabitants to retreat behind the ramparts, abandoning the rural villas.
The Romans equipped Antibes with two aqueducts (Font Vieille et Bouillide) and tanks, essential in this arid region. The enclosure, studied in 1886 by H. Bazin, shows medieval reuses (especially by the Grimaldi) before its transformation into a bastioned fortress after 1608, the date of the takeover by Henri IV. The ancient plans attest to the superposition of the epochs: the ancient bases still supported the walls of the seventeenth century.
The absence of written documents makes precise dating difficult. Only archaeological remains, such as the foundations of towers that disappeared before 1608, partially reconstruct the enclosure. Its inscription to historical monuments in 1939 underlines its importance as a witness to the Greek, Roman and medieval strata of Antibes. The first certified bishop, Saint Hermentaire (442), also marks the passage into the Christian era.
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