Decazeville

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Decazeville
Decazeville Coat of Arms
Decazeville (France)
Decazeville
region Occitania
Department Aveyron
Arrondissement Villefranche-de-Rouergue
Canton Lot et Dourdou
Community association Decazeville Community
Coordinates 44 ° 34 ′  N , 2 ° 15 ′  E Coordinates: 44 ° 34 ′  N , 2 ° 15 ′  E
height 163–454 m
surface 13.88 km 2
Residents 5,360 (January 1, 2017)
Population density 386 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code 12300
INSEE code 12089
Website Community website

Town Hall ( Hôtel de ville )

The municipality of Decazeville with 5360 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017) is located in the French region of Occitania in the Aveyron department . The municipality is located on the GR 65 long-distance hiking trail , which largely follows the historical course of the French Way of St. James, Via Podiensis . The community developed in the 19th century under the influence of the Industrial Revolution and was named after the Duke Élie Decazes (1780-1860).

Geography and traffic

Decazeville is located on the southwestern edge of the Massif Central , south above the Lot Valley, about five kilometers from Livinhac-le-Haut on the Riou Mort river . This flows into the Lot after a few kilometers. The closest major French cities are Lyon (242 km) in the northeast, Toulouse (124 km) in the southwest, Bordeaux (227 km) in the west and Montpellier (167 km) in the southeast.

The nearest commercial airport is Rodez-Marcillac , which is served by Air France and Ryanair , among others . It is about 29 kilometers by road on the D 840 , in a south-easterly direction. The nearest train station is Viviez -Decazeville, about two kilometers away. Decazeville is connected to the French motorway network via the A 20 - exit 56 - (D 802) Figeac - ( N 140 ) Decazeville and the A75 - exit 42 - ( N 88 ) Rodez - (N 140) Decazeville . The D 840 leads through Decazeville in an east-west direction, while the D 963 leads north into the Lot Valley and the D 221 leads south.

Way of St. James

Decazeville is located on Via Podiensis , one of the four historic pilgrimage routes in France. In addition to the pilgrims' hostels, there are several hotels, restaurants and a campsite. The Camino de Santiago leads from Decazeville via the Saint Roch chapel down into the Lot Valley and then via a forest path to the entrance to Livinhac-le-Haut . Livinhac-le-Haut can be reached by road via the D963 and D21 routes.

history

The city developed from the small medieval town of La Salle. A small amount of coal has been mined since the 16th century and shipped to Bordeaux via the Lot and Garonne rivers. In the 19th century, coal mining developed into a flourishing iron and steel industry . Élie Decazes founded a company for the development of coal and steel production in the Aveyron department in 1826 . In 1834 a new city was founded from the central parishes of Vialarels, St. Michael and Saint-Roch, which was named Decazeville in honor of Élie Decazes. The establishment of the iron and steel industry was organized by François Gracchus Cabrol , a graduate of the École polytechnique . Blast furnaces and coking plants were built under his leadership . This metallurgical industry reached its peak in the early 20th century, with 9,000 workers and an annual pig iron production of one million tons. Today little is left of this branch of industry. The last mine in the region was closed in June 2001. Only the La Décuverte open-cast museum still bears witness to the once decisive economic factor.

Population development

year 1962 1968 1975 1982 1990 1999 2006 2016
Residents 11,855 10,532 10,231 8804 7754 6805 6294 5355
Sources: Cassini and INSEE

Attractions

  • Musée régional de géologie , which is mainly dedicated to the Carboniferous Age and the coal deposits that formed at that time.
  • In the Church of Notre-Dame there is a painting by Gustave Moreau from the 19th century, which depicts the Cross of Jesus.

Twin cities

Personalities

  • Élie Decazes (1780–1860), namesake of the city, chairman of the Council of Ministers under Louis XVIII.
  • François Gracchus Cabrol (1793–1882), captain of Napoleon's army, director of the League of Coal and Smelting of Aveyron, is buried in Decazeville.
  • Emma Calvé (1858–1942), the French soprano was born in Decazeville.
  • Jacques Monfrin (1924–1998), philologist and historian, was born in Decazeville.

literature

  • Bettina Forst: French Way of St. James. From Le Puy-en-Velay to Roncesvalles. All stages - with variants and height profiles. Bergverlag Rother, Munich (recte: Ottobrunn) 2007, ISBN 978-3-7633-4350-8 ( Rother hiking guide ).
  • Bert Teklenborg: Cycling along the Camino de Santiago. From the Rhine to the western end of Europe. (Cycling guide, route planner). 3rd revised edition. Publishing House Tyrolia, Innsbruck 2007, ISBN 978-3-7022-2626-8 .

Web links

Commons : Decazeville  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Congregational information on annuaire-mairie.fr (French). Retrieved on January 21, 2010
Muszla Jakuba.svg
Way of St. James " Via Podiensis "

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