Colmars

Colmars
Colmars
Commune
	An overall view of the village of Colmars
	Coat of arms
	Location of Colmars
	Colmars Colmars
	Coordinates: 44°10′55″N 6°37′38″E / 44.182°N 6.6272°E
Country	France
Region	Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Department	Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
Arrondissement	Castellane
Canton	Castellane
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Magali Surle-Girieud
Area 1	81.82 km2 (31.59 sq mi)
Population (2023)	583
• Density	7.13/km2 (18.5/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	04061 /04370
Elevation	1,178–2,742 m (3,865–8,996 ft) ; (avg. 1,250 m or 4,100 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Colmars (French pronunciation: [kɔlmaʁ]; Occitan: Cormarç) or Colmars-les-Alpes (French pronunciation: [kɔlmaʁ lez‿alp]) is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France.

The official name of the commune, according to the geographical code of the INSEE, is "Colmars",^[3] but it is always referred locally as "Colmars-les-Alpes", even though it is not recognised in legal situations. The signs on entering the village read "Colmars-les-Alpes".

Geography

The village is situated at the confluence of the rivers Verdon and Lance, at an altitude of 1250 metres. The site of the village is a site inscrit, a site of special natural, scientific or historical interest.

Hamlets

There are two other hamlets in the commune: Clignon-Haut and Clignon-Bas.

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	360	—
1975	311	−2.07%
1982	314	+0.14%
1990	367	+1.97%
1999	378	+0.33%
2007	385	+0.23%
2012	395	+0.51%
2017	496	+4.66%
2023	583	+2.73%
Source: INSEE^[4]

The inhabitants are called Colmarsiens in French.

Geography

Mountains and peaks

There are numerous high points in the commune. The main ones are:

Tête de l'Encombrette (2682m)
Autapie (2426m)
Roche Cline
Valpane

History

The name of the village comes from a hill dedicated to Mars by the Romans ("Collo Marto"). The village was originally situated further up a hill, but the site was judged to be too cramped and not possible to expand any further, so it was abandoned. It was destroyed by Raymond de Turenne in 1390.

Modern era

In the French Wars of Religion, the site was the target of several attacks:

Paulon de Mauvans, a Protestant captain, pillaged the village in 1560;
Cartier, a captain operating on behalf of de Mauvans, took and ransomed the village in 1583;
The French Catholic League sacked the village a few years later.