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Provins
Provins is a commune of Seine-et-Marne about 77 km south-east of Paris. In the Middle Ages, it was a capital of the Counts of Champagne and hosted some of the great Champagne fairs, which linked merchants from northern Europe with those of the Mediterranean. This past has earned it UNESCO World Heritage inscription since 13 December 2001, under the name "Provins, Town of Medieval Fairs".
The town divides between the fortified upper town and the lower town. You see the César tower, an octagonal twelfth-century keep built on an artificial mound, and ramparts of about 1,200 metres marked by 22 towers, raised between 1226 and 1314. The Grange aux Dîmes, a former twelfth-century merchant's house, houses a museum devoted to medieval trades. Underground passages, former fuller's earth quarries later used as storehouses, complete the visit. Provins is also known for the rose, used to make jams and syrups.
