One hundred and fifty years later, the Riviera transitioned from being an “outdoor hospital” to a playground for the wealthy. At a hotel restaurant in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, the owner had a unique policy of accepting paintings as payment. Picasso humorously referred to it as his kind of hotel. Unfortunately, in 1960, burglars broke in and stole 21 valuable paintings, including works by Braque, Léger, Mirò, and Modigliani. The stolen Picasso painting was too large to fit in their getaway car.
Miles’ stories from the Riviera could easily become books, plays, symphonies, movies, or paintings themselves. Many already have. The Riviera attracted a prestigious group of individuals with diverse tastes, talents, whims, and ambitions, who contributed to its golden age. They were not simply vacationing; they were shaping the culture that would define future centuries on this “thin strip of Shangri-La”.
Their endeavors also brought new heights of opulence to the Riviera. Lord Brougham, a highly influential figure, “discovered” Cannes in 1834 when he had to change his travel plans due to a cholera epidemic. Enamored by the idyllic surroundings, he decided to build a villa there. Other foreign aristocrats followed his lead, resulting in 50 extraordinary villas and chateaus, as noted by Prosper Mérimée twenty years later.
As the belle epoque neared, extravagant villas and grand hotels flourished to the east of Cannes, stretching from Nice and Beaulieu to La Turbie and Cap Martin. The arrival of Queen Victoria in Menton, disguised as the “Countess of Balmoral,” along with the established presence of Russian Grand Duchess Anastasia, amplified the allure of the Côte d’Azur. Prior to their arrival, Queen Victoria’s son, the future King Edward VII, had already indulged in various activities such as tennis, yachting, golf, and baccarat in Cannes, while also engaging in amorous encounters with courtesans in Monte Carlo.
After World War I, affluent Americans joined in by constructing their own palaces along the Riviera. Millionaire artist Henry Clews created the enchanting “Château de la Napoule” to the west of Cannes, while railway magnate Frank Jay Gould built multiple villas and hotels, including the iconic Art Deco Palais de la Méditerranée in Nice. In Antibes, the more low-key Murphys attracted artists and writers to their Villa Americana. An amusing incident occurred in 1925 when Edith Wharton invited their guest, F. Scott Fitzgerald, for tea at her villa in Hyères, and he arrived inebriated, exclaiming, “You don’t know anything about life!”
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