Le Vigan (; ) is a commune in the

Gard Gard () is a department in Southern France, located in the region of Occitanie. It had a population of 748,437 as of 2019;department in southern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.

Geography

Le Vigan is located at the south of the Massif Central and near the Mont Aigoual, in the Arre valley. The town is on the southern edge of the Cévennes National Park and is the most populous town within the park.

Climate

Le Vigan has a

hot-summer Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Csa''). The average annual temperature in Le Vigan is . The average annual rainfall is with October as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Le Vigan was on 28 June 2019; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 16 January 1985.

History

On a river at the southern edge of the Massif Central, Le Vigan is situated on a natural boundaryline. In the 2nd-3rd centuries BCE, it was situated between the territories occupied by the Volcae Arecomici, the Averni, and the

Gabali The Gabali (Gaulish: *''Gabli'') were a Gauls, Gallic tribe dwelling in the later Gévaudan region during the La Tène culture, Iron Age and the Roman period. Name They are mentioned as ''Gabalos'' or ''Gabalis'' by Julius Caesar, Caesar (mid-1 ...

tribes. In 121 BCE the Romans gained control of much of southern France including the area around Le Vigan. The Volcae Arecomici voluntarily surrendered their territory, and the

Arverni The Arverni (Gaulish: *''Aruernoi'') were a Gallic people dwelling in the modern Auvergne region during the Iron Age and the Roman period. They were one of the most powerful tribes of ancient Gaul, contesting primacy over the region with the n ...

gave up much territory in a treaty that nevertheless preserve their independence. Under Roman control, Le Vigan was part of the Roman "Provincia," (hence

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

) called

Gallia Narbonensis Gallia Narbonensis (Latin for "Gaul of Narbonne", from its chief settlement) was a Roman province located in Occitania and Provence, in Southern France. It was also known as Provincia Nostra ("Our Province"), because it was the first ...

. The

Visigoths The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied Barbarian kingdoms, barbarian military group unite ...

took control of the western half of Gallia Narbonensis in 462 CE, a part known as

Septimania Septimania is a historical region in modern-day southern France. It referred to the western part of the Roman province of '' Gallia Narbonensis'' that passed to the control of the Visigoths in 462, when Septimania was ceded to their king, Theod ...

which included Le Vigan, and they retained control despite attempts in 586 and 589 by the Frankish (

Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from around the middle of the 5th century until Pepin the Short in 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the ...

) King

Guntram Saint Gontrand ( 532 in Soissons – 28 March 592 in Chalon-sur-Saône), also called Gontran, Gontram, Guntram, Gunthram, Gunthchramn, and Guntramnus, was the king of the Kingdom of Orléans from AD 561 to AD 592. He was the third-eldest and seco ...

to conquer the area from the north. In 587 the region came under

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

rule with the conversion of the Visigoth king Reccared I. In 719, the Moor Al-Samh conquered Septimania and the Franks struggled to take it back over the next several decades. By 780, Charlemagne had conquered the entire territory. Le Vigan is on the site of an ancient Roman town which may be "Vindomagus", but it is not certain. There is a spring called "la source d'

Isis Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...

," which has provided water to the city since at least 1069 and which was named in honor of the Roman goddess. The town was destroyed during the

Moorish The term Moor is an exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a single, distinct or self-defi ...

invasion of Provence.

Population

Economy

As with many towns in the

Cévennes The Cévennes ( , ; ) is a cultural region and range of mountains in south-central France, on the south-east edge of the Massif Central. It covers parts of the '' départements'' of Ardèche, Gard, Hérault and Lozère. Rich in geographical, ...

, there were many textile industries there in the past. Several

quarries A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to manage their safet ...

south of town above Montdardier were formerly important sources of

lithographic limestone Lithographic limestone is hard limestone that is sufficiently fine-grained, homogeneous and defect-free to be used for lithography. Geologists use the term "lithographic texture" to refer to a grain size under 1/250 mm. The term "sublitho ...

. Stone from these quarries earned an honorable mention in

the Great Exhibition The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to the temporary structure in which it was held), was an international exhibition that took ...

of 1851. Le Vigan is a tourist destination during summer time.

Personalities

* Chevalier d'Assas (1733–1760) - A captain of the Régiment d'Auvergne famous for an account of his participation in the battle of Kloster Kampen during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

. He is often credited with sacrificing his life to alert his regiment to the presence of the English near their camp, with the phrase "To me, Auvergne! Here is the enemy!" * Abraham Peyrenc de Moras (1684-1732) - Banker, born a commoner, rose to the nobility and died immensely wealthy. Built the Hôtel Biron in Paris which now houses the

Musée Rodin The Musée Rodin () of Paris, France, is an art museum that was opened in 1919, primarily dedicated to the works of the French sculptor Auguste Rodin. It has two sites: the Hôtel Biron and surrounding grounds in central Paris, as well as just ...

. *

Caroline Proust Caroline Proust (born 18 November 1967) is a French classically trained actress best known to international audiences for her role as Captain Laure Berthaud in the French TV series '' Spiral''. She has also appeared in the Netflix TV series Not ...

Actress (1967-) * (1731–1824), Constituent * Odette Teissier du Cros (1906-1997), founder and curator of Le Vigan's * (1771-1799) - soldier of the French Revolution

Sights

* The shows the life in the Cévennes during the past centuries * The ''Vieux Pont'' is an old bridge built during the 11th century * The old hotel Faventines called Château d'Assas from 18th century * The Arboretum de la Foux and Arboretum de l'Hort de Dieu are mature

arboretum An arboretum (: arboreta) is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees and shrubs of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, many modern arbor ...