Gex (Ain)
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| region | Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes | |
| Department | Ain | |
| Arrondissement | Gex | |
| Canton | Gex | |
| Community association | Pays de Gex | |
| Coordinates | 46 ° 20 ' N , 6 ° 3' E | |
| height | 532-1,614 m | |
| surface | 32.02 km 2 | |
| Residents | 13,118 (January 1, 2017) | |
| Population density | 410 inhabitants / km 2 | |
| Post Code | 01170 | |
| INSEE code | 01173 | |
| Website | www.gex.fr | |
 town hall |
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Gex ( pronunciation : ʒɛks ) is a French municipality with 13,118 inhabitants (at January 1, 2017) in the department of Ain in the region Auvergne Rhône-Alpes . It is the capital of the Gex arrondissement and the seat of the Pays de Gex municipal association .
geography
Gex is located at 600 m , about 16 kilometers north-northwest of the city of Geneva (as the crow flies). The city extends in the Pays de Gex in a promising elevated position at the foot of the Jura , on the northern edge of the Geneva basin, on a promontory above the Journans valley . It is the southern pass of the Col de la Faucille and the starting point for excursions into the High Jura.
The area of the 32.02 km² municipal area covers a section of the Pays de Gex. The main settlement area of Gex is on the mostly gently sloping slope towards the south at the foot of the Jura. This slope is subdivided by the valley lowlands of the Journans (tributary of the Allondon ) and Oudar (tributary of the Versoix ) and their side streams. In the east, the municipal area extends to the heights of Mont Mourex ( 754 m ), which is in front of the Jura.
The entire northern part of the municipality lies in the area of the high-relief chain of the Upper Jurassic. This high ridge is only interrupted by the gap in the Col de la Faucille ( 1323 m ). East of the pass are the heights of Turet ( 1460 m ) and Vieille Maison ( 1511 m ), to the west of them the Petit Montrond ( 1534 m ), the Mont Rond (with 1596 m the highest elevation of Gex) and the flank of the outside of the area lying Colomby de Gex . From a geological point of view, this chain forms an anticline consisting of sediments from the Upper Jurassic period . The steep southern slope of the Jura range is subdivided by the Creux de l'Envers , a characteristic evacuation basin in the fracture zone at the Col de la Faucille, and other erosion valleys . The entire chain is densely forested, larger pastures are only available at the highest heights. Typical karst features such as cart fields and sinkholes can also be found here . Belonging to the high Jura northern municipality of Gex is part of the nature reserve Haute Chaîne du Jura and the Regional Natural Park of Haut-Jura , with which the community is associated as an official place of access.
In addition to the city itself, Gex also includes various outlying quarters and hamlets, including:
- Gex-la-Ville ( 612 m ) in the valley basin on the Oudar
- Tougin ( 575 m ) on the plateau west of the Journans
- Pitegny ( 580 m ) on the southwest slope of Mont Mourex
- Les Maladières ( 810 m ) on the ascent to Col de la Faucille
- the hotel and holiday home area on the top of the Col de la Faucille pass
Neighboring municipalities of Gex are Mijoux in the west and north, Vesancy and Grilly in the east and Cessy and Echenevex in the south.
history
The municipality of Gex was settled very early. The earliest finds date from around 1800 BC. During the Gallo-Roman period, Gex was a military base.
Gex is first mentioned in 1124 under the name de Gayo . Over the centuries, the spelling changed from Gaix (1137), Jaz (1160), Gez (1227), Jayz (1234), Jax (1265), Jacium (1278), Geyz (1289), Ges (1416) to Gex (Documented in writing in 1559). The variants Gey (1589) and Gais (1594) appeared later . The place name goes back to the Gallo-Roman gender name Gaius .
Since the beginning of the 12th century, Gex formed the center of a rule that initially belonged to the von Gex family, but passed to the Counts of Geneva in the middle of the 12th century . These fortified the town of Gex and gave it certain rights of freedom. After the occupation by Count Amadeus VI. of Savoy in 1353, Gex came under Savoy rule for around 200 years. In 1536 the city was conquered by the Bernese with the help of the city of Geneva and declared the capital of the Bernese bailiwick Pays de Gex, whereby the Reformation was introduced. With the Treaty of Lausanne in 1564, Gex returned to the House of Savoy. During the wars between Geneva and Savoy, Gex was again conquered and sacked by the former in 1589. Through the Treaty of Lyon, the city came to France in 1601 and returned to the Catholic faith. With the reorganization of the administrative structure in the Geneva area as part of the Congress of Vienna, Gex remained with France, but belonged to the free trade zone , which included the entire Geneva basin. This resulted in close economic ties with the city of Geneva.
Attractions
- The parish church of Gex was rebuilt in 1860 on the site of the previous medieval building. It has a baptistery from 1520 and two baptismal fonts from the 13th and 14th centuries.
- Remains of the former city wall from the 13th century as well as various houses from the 17th to 19th centuries have been preserved in the old core.
- The current Hôtel de Ville (town hall) was built in 1869.
- The remains of the medieval castle of the Lords of Gex from the 13th century and the ruins of the former Florimont castle bear witness to the former feudal rule of Gex.
- In Gex there is a fire brigade museum (Musée des Sapeurs-Pompiers).
- Wash house , built in 1675
See also: List of Monuments historiques in Gex (Ain)
population
| Population development | |
|---|---|
| year | Residents |
| 1962 | 2361 |
| 1968 | 3137 |
| 1975 | 4296 |
| 1982 | 4868 |
| 1990 | 6615 |
| 1999 | 7733 |
| 2006 | 9323 |
| 2011 | 10446 |
With 13,118 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017) Gex is one of the largest municipalities in the Ain department. The population has continued to grow rapidly since the 1950s and continues to this day. Outside the old town center, numerous single and multi-family houses as well as apartment blocks were built. The slope above and below Gex is now loosely built over with residential and commercial estates. The settlement area has almost seamlessly merged with that of Cessy. Today Gex is part of the outer agglomeration belt of Geneva. The French adjective for Gex is Gessien or Gexois .
Economy and Infrastructure
Up until the beginning of the 20th century, Gex was a town mainly characterized by agriculture and retail trade. Today agriculture is only of minor importance. Since the 1950s, Gex gradually developed into a place of residence for the agglomeration of Geneva. Today there are numerous small and medium-sized businesses, as well as various industries, construction and trading companies and companies in the service sector. Commercial and industrial zones developed in the east and south of Gex and at Tougin. Numerous workers are also commuters who work as cross-border commuters in the Geneva agglomeration.
The community has good transport links. It is located at the junction of the main roads from Geneva via the Col de la Faucille to Morez and from Saint-Genis-Pouilly to Divonne-les-Bains . The nearest connection to the motorway, the Swiss A1 , is around 10 km away. The former railway line , which ran from Bellegarde-sur-Valserine to Divonne-les-Bains, was closed and is now being replaced by a bus line. Another bus line connects Gex with Ferney-Voltaire and Geneva, respectively. From 1900 to 1932 Gex was the terminus of the Gex – Ferney-Voltaire tram . In Ferney there was a transition to the Geneva tram . Genève-Cointrin Airport is also easily accessible.
tourism
Thanks to its proximity to Geneva, Gex has also seen a tourist boom since 1960. The top of the Col de la Faucille pass is the starting point for hikes on the Jura ridge in summer, while skiing is possible in winter (mountain railways and ski lifts). The entire top of the pass has been expanded for tourism in recent years and hotels and apartment houses have been built. A 1365 m long summer toboggan run (French: luge sur rails ) similar to the Alpine Coaster in Immenstadt is part of it.
sons and daughters of the town
- Jacques-André Émery (1732–1811), priest, superior general of the Sulpizians, key figure in the church during the revolutionary period
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Gex - notice communal. In: cassini.ehess.fr. Retrieved June 10, 2015 (French, INSEE population from 1968 ).