Editing Provence (section)

=== 20th century ===
Between World War I and World War II, Provence was bitterly divided between the more conservative rural areas and the more radical big cities. There were widespread strikes in Marseille in 1919, and riots in Toulon in 1935.

After the defeat of France by Germany in June 1940, France was divided into an occupied zone and unoccupied zone, with Provence in the unoccupied zone. Parts of eastern Provence were occupied by Italian soldiers. Collaboration and passive resistance gradually gave way to more active resistance, particularly after Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941 and the Communist Party became active in the resistance. [[Jean Moulin]], the deputy of [[Charles de Gaulle]], the leader of the Free France resistance movement, was parachuted into [[Eygalières]], in the [[Bouches-du-Rhône]] on 2 January 1942 to unite the diverse resistance movements in all of France against the Germans.

In November 1942, following Allied landings in North Africa ([[Operation Torch]]), the Germans occupied all of Provence ([[Operation Attila (World War II)|Operation Attila]]) and then headed for Toulon ([[Case Anton]]). The French fleet at Toulon sabotaged its own ships to keep them from falling into German hands.

The Germans began a systematic rounding-up of French Jews and refugees from Nice and Marseille. Many thousands were taken to concentration camps, and few survived. A large quarter around the port of Marseille was emptied of inhabitants and dynamited, so it would not serve as a base for the resistance. Nonetheless, the resistance grew stronger; the leader of the pro-German militia, the Milice, in Marseille was assassinated in April 1943.

On 15 August 1944, two months after the Allied landings in Normandy ([[Operation Overlord]]), the [[Seventh United States Army]] under General [[Alexander Patch]], with a [[Free French]] corps under General [[Jean de Lattre de Tassigny]], landed on the coast of Var between [[Saint-Raphaël, Var|St. Raphael]] and [[Cavalaire]] ([[Operation Dragoon]]). The American forces moved north toward [[Manosque]], [[Sisteron]] and [[Gap, Hautes-Alpes|Gap]], while the French First Armored Division under General Vigier liberated Brignoles, Salon, Arles, and Avignon. The Germans in Toulon resisted until 27 August, and Marseille was not liberated until 25 August.

After the end of the war, Provence faced an enormous task of reconstruction, particularly of the ports and railroads destroyed during the war. As part of this effort, the first modern concrete apartment block, the [[Unité d'habitation]] of [[Corbusier]], was built in Marseille in 1947–52. In 1962, Provence absorbed a large number of French citizens who left Algeria after its independence. Since that time, large North African communities settled in and around the big cities, particularly Marseille and Toulon.

In the 1940s, Provence underwent a cultural renewal, with the founding of the [[Avignon Festival]] of theatre (1947), the reopening of the [[Cannes Film Festival]] (begun in 1939), and many other major events. With the building of new highways, particularly the Paris Marseille autoroute which opened in 1970, Provence became destination for mass tourism from all over Europe. Many Europeans, particularly from Britain, bought summer houses in Provence. The arrival of the [[TGV]] high-speed trains shortened the trip from Paris to Marseille to less than four hours.

In recent years, residents of Provence have struggled to reconcile economic development and population growth with their desire to preserve the region's unique landscape and culture.