Bélesta (; oc, Belestar) is a
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
, situated on the Hers-Vif river in the
Ariège 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, ...
of southwestern
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 ...
.
History
Situated in the valley of the
Hers-Vif
The Hers-Vif (, "Live Hers", as opposed to the slower flowing Hers-Mort, "Dead Hers"), also named ''Grand Hers'' or simply ''Hers'', is a long river in southern France, right tributary of the Ariège.
The Hers-Vif rises at an elevation of about ...
, Bélesta is known for its fir tree forest, which was a former royal forest whose wood was used to construct the mast of ships. 1 km upstream from the village is a spring, created by a significant surge of water from the Karst Plateau de Sault.
Population
See also
*
Communes of the Ariège department
The following is a list of the 327 Communes of France, communes of the Ariège (department), Ariège Departments of France, department of France.
The communes cooperate in the following Communes of France#Intercommunality, intercommunalities (a ...
References
Communes of Ariège (department)
Ariège communes articles needing translation from French Wikipedia
{{Ariège-geo-stub