O Homem Sem Cabeça de Saint-Tropez

Saint-Tropez got its name from an early Christian martyr, Saint Torpes of Pisa. Saint Torpes was a tax collector for the Roman Emperor Nero. As legend has it, he was a sort-of Robin Hood, collecting tax money (which often included beatings) in the name of Nero, and going out after dark to give handouts to the poor.

In the year 68, Paul the Apostle converteu Torpes ao cristianismo, que então professou sua nova fé a Nero durante uma cerimônia pagã. Nero exigiu que ele renunciasse à sua fé, e ordenou sua decapitação quando ele se recusou.

Saint Torpes’ head was tossed into the Arno, a river in Tuscany, and his body was sent out into the Mediterranean on a rotten boat with a rooster and a dog, who they expected to further desecrate the body.

No que hoje é chamado de St Tropez, uma mulher santa sonhou com a chegada do corpo e contou aos moradores. Esperava-se que seu corpo fosse comido, mas quando chegou ao local da cidade atual, não muito longe do cemitério dos marinheiros, permaneceu intocado após sua jornada de 18 dias.

Os moradores locais viram isso como um sinal da retidão de Torpes e nomearam sua vila em sua homenagem (Saint Tropez é uma maneira francesa de dizer seu nome). Saint Torpes também foi feito o santo padroeiro dos marinheiros.

Amazingly, the animals somehow lived; the cock flew away towards the village later named Cogolin  (meaning “little rooster”) after it, and the dog headed towards the town that became Grimaud (“old dog”), later named in honor of this dog.

To this day, there are still two festivals to celebrate Torpes:

In mid-May, at a festival called Les Bravades (which commemorates the time of the creation of the army and its achievements — and involves plenty of gunfire), locals parade his bust down the streets to venerate him. Les Bravades dates to the 15th century and is a traditional (and loud) Provencal religious and military celebration held over three days each May. Apparently, it gives grown men a good excuse to don old military uniforms and fire muskets. Backed by a drum corps, parades and jubilant onlookers, this celebration is a beloved St-Tropez event, honoring military history as well as the town’s patron saint, Saint Torpes, whose bust is marched through the narrow lanes.

And in mid-June he is celebrated during ceremonies to commemorate the victory of the Tropezian militia over the Spaniards in 1673.

The iconic and oft-photographed bell tower of St-Tropez belongs to the Italian baroque-style Notre Dame de l’Assomption , which contains a wooden bust of Saint Torpes.

Quer mais? Read our guide to St-Tropez’s modern history, the crazy stories of the slaves, pirates and painters in St. Tropez’s ancient historye aprenda sobre the scandal that made St-Tropez famous.