Beaucens

Beaucens ; Beucens
region	Occitania
Department	Hautes-Pyrénées
Arrondissement	Argelès-Gazost
Canton	La Vallée des Gaves
Community association	Pyrénées Vallées des Gaves
Coordinates	42 ° 59 ′ N , 0 ° 4 ′ E Coordinates: 42 ° 59 ′ N , 0 ° 4 ′ E
height	434-2,637 m
surface	36.82 km 2
Residents	409 (January 1, 2017)
Population density	11 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code	65400
INSEE code	65077

Beaucens ( Gaskognisch Beucens ) is a French commune with 409 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017) in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region ; it belongs to the Argelès-Gazost arrondissement and the canton of La Vallée des Gaves .

location

Beaucens is located in the south of the Hautes-Pyrénées department, around 31 km (as the crow flies) south of Tarbes . The place is east of the river Gave de Gavarnie in the vicinity of the Pyrenees National Park .

The municipality consists of the village of Beaucens, numerous hamlets such as Araillès, Gézat, Nouillan, Valauris and vielle. These are all close to the east of the Gave de Pau river. There is also the Station de Hautacam ski station and some individual farms. Large parts of the community are mountainous and uninhabited. The highest point in the municipality is the Pic de Merlheu (2637 m above sea level) on the eastern border of Beaucens. The most important body of water is the Lac Bleu de Lesponne mountain lake at around 2000 meters above sea level.

history

In the early Middle Ages the rulership changed frequently (Visigoths, Basques, Franks, Saracens). After that, the place was under the rule of the Kingdom of Aquitaine and the Duchy of Gascony for centuries. From 900 to 1609 there was a county of Bigorre within the aforementioned areas. During the Hundred Years War , Beaucens was sometimes under English, sometimes under French rule. From 1425 to 1609 the place belonged as part of the County of Bigorre to the County of Foix, which is only loosely connected to France . Because the last ruler of this county, King Henry II of the House of Bourbon, ascended the throne of France (as Henry IV) in 1589, the places in the region were crown domains from 1609 to 1789. The municipality belonged to the District of Argelès from 1793 to 1801. In addition, it was from 1793 to 1801 part of the canton of Préchac and from 1801 to 2015 part of the canton of Argelès-Gazost (1793-1896 under the name of Canton Argelès ). With the exception of the years 1926 to 1942 (Arrondissement Bagnères), Beaucens was administratively part of the Arrondissement Argelès-Gazost from 1801. First mentioned by name as Belsen in 870 in the green book of Bénac. The municipality is part of the historical Lavedan landscape (also known as the Pays des Sept Vallées ).

Population development

year	1793	1836	1846	1866	1876	1926	1931	1946	1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2006	2012
Residents	379	491	502	468	445	265	361	237	260	247	244	249	309	350	426	421
Sources: Cassini and INSEE

In the 19th century the place often had around 500 inhabitants. The increasing mechanization of agriculture led to a continuous decline in the number of inhabitants to the lows of recent times. Between 1982 and 2008 there was a strong growth phase (from 249 to 432 residents).