Azille

Azille

The old railway station

Coat of arms
Azille

Coordinates: 43°16′40″N 2°39′30″E / 43.2779°N 2.6584°E / 43.2779; 2.6584Coordinates: 43°16′40″N 2°39′30″E / 43.2779°N 2.6584°E / 43.2779; 2.6584
Country France
Region Occitanie
Department Aude
Arrondissement Carcassonne
Canton Peyriac-Minervois
Intercommunality Carcassonne Agglo
Government
  Mayor (20012020) Philippe Chevrier
Area1 23.33 km2 (9.01 sq mi)
Population (2010)2 1,188
  Density 51/km2 (130/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
  Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
INSEE/Postal code 11022 / 11700
Elevation 39–120 m (128–394 ft)
(avg. 84 m or 276 ft)

1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Azille is a French commune in the Aude department in the Occitanie region of southern France.

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Azillois or Azilloises.[1]

Geography

Azille is located at the foot of the Montagne Noire some 25 km east by north-east of Carcassonne and 25 km west by north-west of Narbonne. The commune is traversed by the D610 from Homps to Puichéric in the south-east and also by the D11 from La Redorte to Rieux-Minervois in the west. Access to the town is by the D206 from Rieux-Minervois which goes to the village then continues north-east to Pépieux. The D72 comes from La Redorte in the south and passes through the town going north to join the D52. The D272 goes north-west from the town to La Livinière. The D606 goes south-east from the town to Homps. Apart from a large lake in the east of the commune (the Lac de Jouarres), which also forms the departmental border between Aude and Hérault, the commune is all farmland. Apart from the village there is the hamlet of Vaissiere in the west.[2]

The Aude river forms the south-eastern border of the commune with the parallel Canal du Midi passing through the south-east of the commune. Several streams rise in the north-west of the commune and flow south-east to join the Aude including the Ruisseau de Georges, the Ruisseau de l'Etang de Jouarres, and the Ruisseau de l'Aiguille.[2]

Neighbouring communes and villages[2]

History

A door in the City walls

Azille contains Prehistoric remains of past civilisations including cremation graves from the iron age, many of which are preserved in the Olonzac museum. There is a superb Roman villa displayed at Billery and there is a statue of Silenus in Greek style, which could be a representation of the Satyr Marcyas, displayed in the Archaeological Museum of Narbonne. The recent discovery of a Visigothic necropolis at the edge of the village indicates habitation since earliest times.

In the Middle Ages, Azille was one of the most important towns in the Archidiocese of Narbonne. In the 14th century the village supported the church of Saint Julien which was part of the chapter of Saint Just of Narbonne. There were also two convents: the Franciscans and the Royal Abbey of Saint Clare. Unusually, apart from the episcopal city, the town was the only one to have two parishes: Saint-Julien and Saint-André. The parish of Saint-André, which is known today only from ruins and the name of a quarter in the town, was united with Saint-Jacques-de-Béziers in 1096, then with the Abbey of Lagrasse in 1118, then finally with Saint-Sebastian-de-Narbonne.

Saint-Julien was the seat of the Archpriest of Minervois. In the 14th century it was made a "county": Azilhan lo Comtal which it remained until the end of the 16th century. A town free of all lordly power from 1483, it belonged to the crown and its arms were those of the king. It was administered by an elected council.

Built on a rocky outcrop, the town was surrounded by walls with multiple doors and towers both round and square. The city became too crampd inside its walls and several suburbs were created to the east beyond the Narbonne gate - the oldest of which had its own wall.

At the beginning of the 13th century Azille was part of the Cathar inspiration and contained a house of Perfects which was destroyed in the period of the Albigensian Crusade. In 1289, 63 years after the death of Francis of Assisi, Eustache de Lévis founded or restored the convent of Franciscans outside the walls to the north of the city. In 1331 his daughter, Isabelle de Lévis - widow of Bertrand de l'Isle, founded The Royal Abbey of Saint Claire (the Abbey of Poor Clares) inside the walls. The remains of the walls and some monuments are still visible today.

The town’s economy was traditionally based on wheat: Azille wheat being highly prized in the 19th century. The commune was also the largest producer of olive oil in the region and there was also wine. The multitude of springs in the area allowed tanners and drapers to prosper.

Jouarres lock on the Canal du Midi

By the end of the 19th century, with the arrival of the railway (the Moux to Caunes-Minervois line), further commerce developed which in turn led to building large houses such as the Château Gallimard where the musician César Franck stayed. The Canal du Midi, built in 1666, traverses the commune for four kilometres. There is a lock in the commune and the Riquet de Jouarres bridge.

Heraldry

Blazon:

Azure, 3 fleurs-de-lys of Or, 2 and 1.

Administration

List of successive mayors[3]

From To Name Party Position
2001 2020 Philippe Chevrier

(Not all data is known)

Demography

In 2010 the commune had 1,188 inhabitants. The evolution of the number of inhabitants is known from the population censuses conducted in the commune since 1793. From the 21st century, a census of communes with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants is held every five years, unlike larger communes that have a sample survey every year.[Note 1]

Population Change (See database)
1793 1800 1806 1821 1831 1836 1841 1846 1851
1,114 1,373 1,467 1,488 1,498 1,580 1,572 1,638 1,648
1856 1861 1866 1872 1876 1881 1886 1891 1896
1,613 1,680 1,860 1,854 1,970 2,238 2,129 1,941 2,000
1901 1906 1911 1921 1926 1931 1936 1946 1954
2,062 2,107 2,033 2,110 1,960 1,989 1,836 1,564 1,524
1962 1968 1975 1982 1990 1999 2006 2010 -
1,495 1,441 1,205 1,195 1,052 1,056 1,080 1,188 -

Sources : Ldh/EHESS/Cassini until 1962, INSEE database from 1968 (population without double counting and municipal population from 2006)

An Azille streetscape
House ornamentation

Economy

Wineries

Azille, with an area of 2,333 hectares, includes 14 areas:

On both sides of the road from Rieux to La Redorte the Argent Double river also borders:

The commune is also remarkable for the diversity of its fauna and its flora with its typically Mediterranean Garrigue and olive trees.

The cultivation of olives has been increasing for a decade.

Transport

From 1887 to 1939 Azille was served by the Moux to Caunes-Minervois railway line. The station remains visible as well as a large part of the structures and embankments.

Culture and heritage

An Azille landscape, looking south

Civil heritage

The commune has a number of sites that are registered as historical monuments:

Other sites of interest

Religious heritage

The Church bell tower

The commune has several religious buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments:

The Chapel of Vaissière
Other religious sites of interest

St. Clair monastery religious Clare returned to Azille in 1891 and built their monastery near the road to Liviniere. 2008 3, the Poor Clares have passed the baton to Chanoinesses of the Mother of God. The convent of the Cordeliers, founded in the 13th century, sold to the Revolution, you can still see the remains of the Franciscan church homes. Several stone carvings on the facades of buildings in the city from it without doubt. The arches of the choir of the church are visible from the aisles Pol-Lapeyre.

Festivals

The town hosts a Feria for several days around 1 May. It is managed by 120 volunteers and attracts about 30,000 people. It had its 10th anniversary in 2012.

Notable people linked to the commune

See also

Media related to Azille at Wikimedia Commons

External links

Notes and references

Notes

  1. At the beginning of the 21st century, the methods of identification have been modified by Law No. 2002-276 of 27 February 2002, the so-called "law of local democracy" and in particular Title V "census operations" allows, after a transitional period running from 2004 to 2008, the annual publication of the legal population of the different French administrative districts. For communes with a population greater than 10,000 inhabitants, a sample survey is conducted annually, the entire territory of these communes is taken into account at the end of the period of five years. The first "legal population" after 1999 under this new law came into force on 1 January 2009 and was based on the census of 2006.

References

  1. Inhabitants of Aude (French)
  2. 1 2 3 Google Maps
  3. List of Mayors of France (French)
  4. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée PA11000008 Canal du Midi (French)
  5. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée PA00102549 Maison Cros (French)
  6. Ministry of Culture, Palissy IM11000126 War Memorial (French)
  7. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000612 Bas-relief (French)
  8. Ministry of Culture, Palissy IM11000127 Priests' Monument (French)
  9. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée PA00102548 Church of Saint-Julien and Saint-Basilisse (French)
  10. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée IA11000045 Church of Saint-Julien and Saint-Basilisse (French)
  11. 1 2 Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11001719 Statue: Virgin and child (French)
  12. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11001722 Bronze bell (French)
  13. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11001721 Bronze bell (French)
  14. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11001720 Bronze bell (French)
  15. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000611 Pulpit (French)
  16. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000610 Painting: Christ on the Cross between Saint Julien, Saint Basilisse, and Saint Madeleine (French)
  17. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000609 Painting: The Ecstasy of Saint Francis (French)
  18. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000608 Painting: Saint Barthélémy (French)
  19. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000607 Painting: Saint Michel between a martyred pope and Saint Sebastian (French)
  20. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000606 Painting: Saint Francis receiving the drawstring bag (French)
  21. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11002578 Monumental Harmonium (French)
  22. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée PA00102547 Chapel of Vaissière (French)
  23. Ministry of Culture, Mérimée PA00102546 Chapel of the Poor Clares (French)
  24. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000605 Painting: the death of Saint Clare (French)
  25. Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000604 Head: Christ (French)
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Azille.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/12/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.