Cairanne (; ) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France whose inhabitants were locally nicknamed leis afrontaires de Cairana, the cheeky ones from Cairanne. It dates from the mid-8th century and is located midway between Orange and Vaison-la-Romaine. The village economy depends largely on its production of wine that falls into the various categories of wines from the Rhône valley. History The settlement was first mentioned in 739 CE as Queroana and later became known as Cayrane and then Cairanne. Early on the Church played a pivotal role in the political and cultural formation of the region. Christianity arrived in Provence very early and the region was already extensively Christianized by the third century CE with numerous monasteries and churches being constructed. The small fortified settlement of Cairanne became first a fortified village of the Templars, who in 1123 began with the construction of the ramparts. As was usual during these times the ramparts served both as a fortified wall and as housing for the local population. In 1312, the order was officially disbanded by Pope Clement V, and some of its properties were assigned to the Knights Hospitallers, with much of it remaining in the hands of King Philip the Fair of France and King Edward II of England. Cairanne was henceforth ruled by the Knights Hospitallers, who later became known as the Knights of Malta. There were many years of war, marauding bands and diseases, including as the Black Death in 1348. Economic conditions for the common people were difficult and slow and a steady decline set in. Cairanne was added to the papal territory in 1317 under the reign of Pope John XXII. It was ruled by a succession of noble families, the last one being Jean-Jacques Vidaud, who was guillotined on 25 June 1794 during the French revolution. From the nineteenth century, wine growers started to move closer to the vineyards which multiplied in the hills and plains around Cairanne. The lower village of Cairanne gradually became the focal point of commerce, education and local government and the old village partly fell into disrepair. In the 1960s, as with many other fortified villages in Provence, the French government began an effort to preserve and renovated these historic places. In 1960 the old Saint Martin church, which was totally in ruins, was rebuilt and dedicated as Notre Dame de