Statue of Lord Brougham – Cannes’ “father”

Few have meant as much to Cannes as the English aristocrat and politician Lord Henry Brougham, whose statue adorns the basin of the avenue de la Liberté.

Cannes pays tribute to Lord Brougham
Cannes has much to thank Lord Henry Brougham for, so much so that on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of his birth, a bronze statue was erected in memory of his great influence on the development of the city.

Came to Cannes by chance
However, it was a pure coincidence that Lord Brougham arrived in 1835 at the then only small and poor fishing village.

He was on his way to Italy when an outbreak of cholera blocked the Italian border and he was forced to stay in France.

He sought temporary residence in the small fishing village of Cannes, and fell so in love with the city and the surrounding coastline that he settled permanently in the city.

At the same time, this was to be the beginning of the rapid development that Cannes has undergone from the small poor fishing village in the 19th century to the city of the fashionable world that Cannes is today.

English construction boom
Lord brougham’s infatuation spread to his rich countrymen, who also wanted to go down in the heat and enjoy the mild winters.

It initiated a true building boom and many of the large impressive aristocratic villas that adorn the Riviera today were built by the English nobility in the 1800s and early 1900s.

With the nobility also came the interest of ordinary people to visit Cannes and the Riviera and this set in motion a significant hotel construction.

The palm entered
Many exotic plants followed in this recovery. From Africa came Eucalyptus, from Australia Mimosa and in 1864 came the legendary Palm Tree – Phoenix Canarienses, which today is synonymous with life on the French Riviera.

By Tommy Sverre / 2021