It was in 1834 when Lord Chancellor Henry Brougham and Vaux of England decided to take his daughter Eleonor-Louise to visit a pretty little fishing village in Italy.
The king of Piémont, however, had closed the Italian - French border due to a cholera epidemic.
Obliged to turn around, Lord Brougham decided to head towards Grasse. As night fell he stopped at the inn owned by Master Pinchinat, found in the current ‘Rue du Port' in Cannes. Charmed by the area; the welcome, ‘la bouillabaisse' fish soup and Master Pinchinat's wine, Lord Brougham, who could only stay a few days, decided to build a residence in the village. Two years later all of London's high society flocked to Cannes for the opening of a vast and superb residence known as Villa Eléanore.
Lord Brougham
Over the next few years the small fishing port filled with sumptuous villas, estates, castles; Cannes became the aristocratic town par excellence. In 1858 ‘La Croisette' promenade became fashionable and thus Cannes was launched.
Today the admirable Hotel de Paris building in its splendour reminds us of the passion of days gone by.
Cannes rapidly became the most media publicized town in the world. Today it still exerts the same power of attraction over French and foreign clientele, who are fascinated by its aura as a star town. Cannes is and also rests the most prestigious showcase of French luxury.
