Auzits (; oc, Ausits) is a commune in the

Aveyron Aveyron (; oc, Avairon; ) is a department in the region of Occitania, Southern France. It was named after the river Aveyron. Its inhabitants are known as ''Aveyronnais'' (masculine) or ''Aveyronnaises'' (feminine) in French. The inhabitants o ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in the

Occitanie Occitanie may refer to: *Occitania, a region in southern France called ''Occitanie'' in French *Occitania (administrative region) Occitania ( ; french: Occitanie ; oc, Occitània ; ca, Occitània ) is the southernmost administrative region of ...

region of southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Auzitois'' or ''Auzitoises''.

Geography

Auzits is located at the top of a hill with the church dominating the valley some 10 km south-east of

Decazeville Decazeville ( oc, La Sala) is a commune in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie region in southern France. The commune was created in the 19th century because of the Industrial Revolution and was named after the Duke of Decazes (1780–186 ...

and 28 km north-west of

Rodez Rodez ( or ; oc, Rodés, ) is a small city and commune in the South of France, about 150 km northeast of Toulouse. It is the prefecture of the department of Aveyron, region of Occitania (formerly Midi-Pyrénées). Rodez is the seat of the ...

. It is a large, green, and hilly commune ranging from the Plateau of Hymes to Ruhle le Haut with many vantage points especially from the highest point in the commune at Hautesserre where there is a 360 degree panorama. Access to the commune can be by many routes: the D840 from

Firmi Firmi (; oc, Firmin) is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Aveyron department The following is a list of the 285 Communes of France, communes of the Aveyron Departments of France, ...

in the north passes down the eastern side of the commune and continues south-east to

Saint-Christophe-Vallon Saint-Christophe-Vallon (; oc, Sent Cristòfa) is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France. Saint-Christophe station has rail connections to Brive-la-Gaillarde, Figeac and Rodez. Population See also *Communes of the Aveyron ...

; the D87 branches from the D840 in the commune and goes south-west then north to the village then west to Montbazens; the D53 from

Cransac Cransac () is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France. Cransac station has rail connections to Brive-la-Gaillarde, Figeac and Rodez. The town was a coal-mining centre until the mine closed in 1962. Cransac has mineral springs, k ...

in the north passes south through the west of the commune going to Bournazel; the D189 goes south from the village towards

Goutrens Goutrens is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Aveyron department The following is a list of the 285 communes of the Aveyron department of France. The communes cooperate in the ...

; the D11 comes from Cransac through the village and continues to Saint-Cristophe-Vallon; and the D631 goes north from the village to join the D840 north of the commune. A railway line passes through the commune from north to south with the Auzits-Aussibal Halt near Aussibel. Apart from the village there are the hamlets of Rulhe, Les Escabes, La Berthoumarie, Le Mas del Bosc, Aussibal, Hymes, Plateau d'Hymes, Le Coustal, and Reyrols. The commune is mixed forest and farmland.Google Maps
/ref> The ''Riou Viou'' flows from the south through the village then turns west along the northern border and continues to join the ''Riou Mort'' at Viviers. The ''Riou Mort'' flows north through the east of the commune and continues north-west to join the

Lot Lot or LOT or The Lot or ''similar'' may refer to: Common meanings Areas * Land lot, an area of land * Parking lot, for automobiles *Backlot, in movie production Sets of items *Lot number, in batch production *Lot, a set of goods for sale togethe ...

at Penchot.

Neighbouring communes and villages

History

Middle Ages

In the Middle Ages Auzits was an important step for pilgrims as it lies on the road to Saint Jacques de Compostela (the path from Conques to Villefranchois). Near the present village there was a small chapel called the Chapel of the which welcomed the sick, tired, or dying. Under the responsibility of the Knights of the

Order of St. John of Jerusalem The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...

, the chapel adjoining the hospice is today still in good condition. In 1358 the English invaded the commune and stayed for thirty years. In 1398, after the withdrawal of the British, the fortified Chateau of Auzits was abandoned. Its inhabitants did not wish for another Lord so collectively decided to build the new village church on the ruins of this castle. Perched on the rocky outcrop overlooking the valley on massive buttresses, the tower was converted into a bell tower. The stones of the second tower were reused for the central nave of the church, which is the present Church of Saint-Maurice.

Contemporary era

During the 19th and 20th centuries the commune experienced spectacular development by the coal industry. The many families who lived on coal-mining declined in number due to successive mine closures in Decazeville basin, leaving only remnants that are still visible on the Rulhe road.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors Auzits Mairie

;Mayors from 1938

Demography

In 2017 the commune had 846 inhabitants.

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

*Remains of a Castle. Long before the present church was built a castle dominated the valley. The castle consisted of two towers, buttresses, towering ramparts, a

drawbridge A drawbridge or draw-bridge is a type of moveable bridge typically at the entrance to a castle or tower surrounded by a moat. In some forms of English, including American English, the word ''drawbridge'' commonly refers to all types of moveable ...

, a

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...

, and a

crypt A crypt (from Latin ''crypta'' "vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, sarcophagi, or religious relics. Originally, crypts were typically found below the main apse of a chur ...

. *Picturesque villages in Auzits and upper Rulhe.

Religious heritage

The commune has one religious building that is registered as an historical monument: *The Church of Saint Maurice (12th century). The church of Saint-Maurice is a curious building because of its architecture. The crypt is oriented east and is part of the old castle chapel. Long abandoned by their inhabitants, these places are now freely available for visits. Decorated with wall paintings dating from the 14th century, this crypt is one of the jewels of Middle Ages Aveyron. Inside the church the altar, made of wood, has sculptures of Saint Maurice. In the centre a painting shows Jacques de Mauleon Labastide, Knight of the

Order of Saint John of Jerusalem The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headqu ...

. Many treasures are no longer present in the church as they were stolen in 2001. Notably a Virgin and Child, dating from the 16th century in polychrome wood and gilded with gold. The Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects: **A

Reliquary A reliquary (also referred to as a ''shrine'', by the French term ''châsse'', and historically including ''wikt:phylactery, phylacteries'') is a container for relics. A portable reliquary may be called a ''fereter'', and a chapel in which it i ...

Monstrance A monstrance, also known as an ostensorium (or an ostensory), is a vessel used in Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, High Church Lutheran and Anglican churches for the display on an altar of some object of piety, such as the consecrated Eucharistic Sa ...

(19th century) **A Statue: Virgin and child (15th century) **A Ciborium (18th century) **2

Cruet A cruet (), also called a caster, is a small flat-bottomed vessel with a narrow neck. Cruets often have an integral lip or spout, and may also have a handle. Unlike a small carafe, a cruet has a Stopper (plug), stopper or lid. Cruets are normal ...

s with plate (19th century) **A Statue: Virgin and child (15th century) **A

Retable A retable is a structure or element placed either on or immediately behind and above the altar or communion table of a church. At the minimum it may be a simple shelf for candles behind an altar, but it can also be a large and elaborate structur ...

and Painting: Saint Maurice (1610) **A Processional Cross (17th century) **A

(19th century)Ministry of Culture, Palissy ;Other religious sites of interest *Church of Saint Étienne de Rulhe. *Chapel of Saint John of the Hospital. *Chapel of Hautesserre. *Cross of Hymes.

Notable people linked to the commune

*Raoul Follereau, researcher and scientist. *Robert Girou, painter. *Roger Noyer,

resistance fighter A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objectives ...

. *Marcial Pleinecassagne, resistance fighter killed for keeping silent in the face of the Germans in 1944.