In Ancient times, the Bodiontici populated the Bléone valley and its tributaries as well as the Gauls who lived in the current commune of Barras.
The Bodiontici were defeated by Augustus at the same time as the other peoples present on the Tropaeum Alpium (before 14 BC.).
Barras was attached to the province of Alpes-Maritimes at the time of its creation.
An ancient settlement has been found at Saint-Pierre and Chapelier south of the village.
The priory of Ganagobie Abbey existed in the 11th century.

In 1070 a person named Féraud donated the fiefdom of Beaucouse (now in the commune of Thoard) to the Abbey of Saint-Victor of Marseille.
Most of the territory of Barras was part of this fief so Barras had the Abbey Saint-Victor as lord.
At that time there was a large estate (villa) in Saint Domnin where the abbey installed a priory which passed to the Bishop of Gap in the 14th century.

The medieval community in Barras was characterized by scattered settlements.
It had 37 fires in 1315.
It was heavily depopulated by the crises of the 14th century (the Black Death and the Hundred Years War) and the population was completely eliminated in 1471.
The smaller fief of Barras belonged to the counts of Provence until 1297 when Charles II of Naples gave it to a noble family which took the name of the fief (the Barras family).
This family lasted until the 19th century and provided many officers such as Jean-Antoine Barras de la Penne (1650-1730) and Jacques Melchior Barras de Saint-Laurent (1719 to 1793).

The community of Tournefort was larger than that of Barras in the Middle Ages: it had 48 fires in 1315 but it was also heavily depopulated by the crises of the 14th century and declared uninhabited in 1400 then annexed by Barras in the 15th century.
At the same time soldiers seized the castle of Tournefort and threatened the region through their raids and looting.
After the successful siege of the castle of Briançonnet (during the same uprising), the army from Sisteron laid siege to Tournefort castle in 1393 and expelled the brigands.

The church was part of the Abbey of Chardavon (currently in the commune of Saint-Geniez) and the Abbey received the revenues attached to this church.

The Patriotic Society of Barras was created in 1791: it was one of the first in the Lower Alps, probably due to the fact that the parish priest, Jean Gaspard Gassend, was deputy to the States General.
It corresponded at that time both with the Jacobin Club and the Feuillants Club.

Barras appears as Les Barras on the 1750 Cassini Map and the same on the 1790 version.

The Coup d'état of 2 December 1851 committed by Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte against the French Second Republic provoked an armed uprising in the Lower Alps in defence of the Constitution.
After the failure of the uprising harsh repression continued on those who stood up to defend the Republic: 5 inhabitants of Barras were brought before the Joint Committee.

As with many communes in the department, Barras had a school well before the Jules Ferry laws: in 1863 the school already provided a primary education for boys.
By contrast no instruction was given to girls: neither the Falloux Laws (1851), which required the opening of a girls' school in communes with more than 800 inhabitants, nor the first Duruy Law (1867), which lowered the threshold to 500 inhabitants, concerned Barras.
The second Duruy Act (1877) allowed it, thanks to government subsidies, to build a new school but it was only after the Ferry laws that the village girls were enrolled.

Until the middle of the 20th century vines were cultivated in Barras.
The wine product was of poor quality and was intended for local consumption.
This culture is now abandoned.
Similarly, olive trees, grown on small areas in the 19th century up to an altitude of 600 metres and exceptionally up to 700 metres, is now gone.
In Ancient times, the Bodiontici populated the Bléone valley and its tributaries as well as the Gauls who lived in the current commune of Barras. The Bodiontici were defeated by Augustus at the same time as the other peoples present on the Tropaeum Alpium (before 14 BC.). Barras was attached to the province of Alpes-Maritimes at the time of its creation. An ancient settlement has been found at Saint-Pierre and Chapelier south of the village. The priory of Ganagobie Abbey existed in the 11th century.
In 1070 a person named Féraud donated the fiefdom of Beaucouse (now in the commune of Thoard) to the Abbey of Saint-Victor of Marseille. Most of the territory of Barras was part of this fief so Barras had the Abbey Saint-Victor as lord. At that time there was a large estate (villa) in Saint Domnin where the abbey installed a priory which passed to the Bishop of Gap in the 14th century.
The medieval community in Barras was characterized by scattered settlements. It had 37 fires in 1315. It was heavily depopulated by the crises of the 14th century (the Black Death and the Hundred Years War) and the population was completely eliminated in 1471. The smaller fief of Barras belonged to the counts of Provence until 1297 when Charles II of Naples gave it to a noble family which took the name of the fief (the Barras family). This family lasted until the 19th century and provided many officers such as Jean-Antoine Barras de la Penne (1650-1730) and Jacques Melchior Barras de Saint-Laurent (1719 to 1793).
The community of Tournefort was larger than that of Barras in the Middle Ages: it had 48 fires in 1315 but it was also heavily depopulated by the crises of the 14th century and declared uninhabited in 1400 then annexed by Barras in the 15th century. At the same time soldiers seized the castle of Tournefort and threatened the region through their raids and looting. After the successful siege of the castle of Briançonnet (during the same uprising), the army from Sisteron laid siege to Tournefort castle in 1393 and expelled the brigands.
The church was part of the Abbey of Chardavon (currently in the commune of Saint-Geniez) and the Abbey received the revenues attached to this church.
The Patriotic Society of Barras was created in 1791: it was one of the first in the Lower Alps, probably due to the fact that the parish priest, Jean Gaspard Gassend, was deputy to the States General. It corresponded at that time both with the Jacobin Club and the Feuillants Club.
Barras appears as Les Barras on the 1750 Cassini Map and the same on the 1790 version.
The Coup d'état of 2 December 1851 committed by Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte against the French Second Republic provoked an armed uprising in the Lower Alps in defence of the Constitution. After the failure of the uprising harsh repression continued on those who stood up to defend the Republic: 5 inhabitants of Barras were brought before the Joint Committee.
As with many communes in the department, Barras had a school well before the Jules Ferry laws: in 1863 the school already provided a primary education for boys. By contrast no instruction was given to girls: neither the Falloux Laws (1851), which required the opening of a girls' school in communes with more than 800 inhabitants, nor the first Duruy Law (1867), which lowered the threshold to 500 inhabitants, concerned Barras. The second Duruy Act (1877) allowed it, thanks to government subsidies, to build a new school but it was only after the Ferry laws that the village girls were enrolled.
Until the middle of the 20th century vines were cultivated in Barras. The wine product was of poor quality and was intended for local consumption. This culture is now abandoned. Similarly, olive trees, grown on small areas in the 19th century up to an altitude of 600 metres and exceptionally up to 700 metres, is now gone.
Barras, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence