The Duke of the French house of Guise captured Nice in 1600. In 1626, Charles Emmanuel opened the ports and declared total freedom of trade, thereby stimulating the commerce of the city, which was controlled by wealthy merchant families. In 1691, Nice was captured by Catinatand and five years later returned to Savoy. The French laid it under siege again in 1705. Its bulwarks and citadel were destroyed the following year.

Nice was restored to Savoy under the treaty of Utrecht, which was adopted in 1713. The new town was built in the peaceful years that followed. However, France and Spain successively enacted control over Nice between 1744 and 1748, the year the second peace treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle was adopted. This treaty ended the War of Austrian Succession, which had broken out in 1740. Nice came under the rule of the king of Sardinia soon thereafter. In 1775, he took away all of its remaining liberties. Captured by the French army in 1792, the city remained part of France until 1814, the year it was restored to Sardinia.

In 1860, King Immanuel III of Sardinia concluded a treaty with Napoleon III, under which he sold Nice to France in exchange for the military and financial support of the French. The deal was voted upon by city electors. Nice-born statesman Garibaldi urged them to vote against the deal, but to no avail. The vast majority of the electors ratified the cession. It is likely that the French, who manned the voting booths, sabotaged the vote.

After the English had arrived in Nice, the city flourished as never before. The newcomers built houses, churches and a cemetery. Promenade des Anglais (or the English Walk) was constructed by Englishman Lewis Way in 1820. Initially, it was intended to serve the purpose of afternoon constitutionals. This former foot and carriage path is now a major itinerary, running along the entire waterfront of Nice.

Moreover, the railroad from Marseilles was extended after Nice had become a part of France. As a result, the city was the first to develop a tourist-based economy. Before, people used to travel for cultural, religious or economic reasons. Now for the first time, they traveled for pleasure. This is how the modern tourist industry was born.