Located alongside the Mercantour Park and Italy, this alpine village, whose territory ranges between 3145 meters at Mount Gelas from where the Gordolasque, a tributary of the Vรฉsubie, descends, and a settlement at 820 meters, overlooks the old Roquebilliรจre and the Vรฉsubie Valley.
This landscape of the Nice hinterland can only enchant and captivate mountain and nature lovers. The houses are of alpine style, built on three levels: a stable, the dwelling, and the barn. Today transformed, they are entirely reserved for habitation and for merchants.
The hamlet of Saint Grat is one of the entrances to the Mercantour Park, where one can find: a cowshed, a barn, and a chapel dedicated to Saint Grat. This hamlet only became French in 1947 with the border adjustments between France and Italy. Belvรฉdรจre is mentioned in a charter from the 12th century, where the town was called Bellevue. In the 16th century, the County was disputed between Franรงois I and the Dukes of Savoy.
Invaded in 1542 by the French, Belvรฉdรจre was burned down by the Lord of Ascros. The village was a fiefdom of the Grimaldis until the execution of Annibal Grimaldi in 1621, after which the lordship passed to the Raynardi and the Boschetti and was elevated to a Barony.
This village has not been spared by plagues: earthquakes in 1564 and 1644, plague in 1629, cholera in 1764, and a fire thirteen years earlier in 1751. The ruins of the Grimaldi castle, destroyed after the execution of the Lord of Beuil, are visible at the very top of this commune. Mention should be made of the church dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul from the 17th century, the chapel of Planet, another chapel dedicated to Saint Blaise where miracles are said to have been recognized. Belvรฉdรจre is an important center for farming, with the majority of the Vรฉsubie livestock found there.
In the Gordolasque Valley, hikers or casual walkers will find pleasure with marked trails. They will be thrilled by a panorama of high peaks where the snows remain clinging into the heart of summer, and lakes where the sun adorns and bathes.
Mount Clapier stands proud and haughty; beyond lies Italy and Piedmont. A border today, thankfully marked only by simple boundary stones.
Thierry Jan
