La Roque-Gageac
| La Roque-Gageac | ||
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| region | Nouvelle-Aquitaine | |
| Department | Dordogne | |
| Arrondissement | Sarlat-la-Canéda | |
| Canton | Sarlat-la-Canéda | |
| Community association | Sarlat-Black Perigord | |
| Coordinates | 44 ° 50 ′ N , 1 ° 11 ′ E | |
| height | 60-218 m | |
| surface | 7.17 km 2 | |
| Residents | 440 (January 1, 2017) | |
| Population density | 61 inhabitants / km 2 | |
| Post Code | 24250 | |
| INSEE code | 24355 | |
| Website | http://www.la-roque-gageac.com/fr | |
 La Roque-Gageac from the west, the yellowish rocky area is reminiscent of the rock fall |
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La Roque-Gageac is a French commune with 440 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017) and is located in the Région Nouvelle-Aquitaine in the Dordogne department , in the Périgord countryside and directly on the banks of the Dordogne . It is famous for its delightful location at the foot of a towering, south-facing cliff in a loop of the Dordogne. La Roque-Gageac is valued by tourists as part of one of the most beautiful sections of the Dordogne Valley, for its almost Mediterranean climate and tropical vegetation. The municipality is known as one of the Plus beaux villages de France ( Most beautiful villages in France) classified. The inhabitants are called the Laroquois .
history
The climatically preferred location was discovered in prehistory and settled accordingly. Numerous artifacts from the Neolithic that were found in the soil of gardens and fields bear witness to this . The Gallo-Roman period and that of the " Pax Romana " (also called " Pax Augusta ") showed extensive settlement of the gentle hills in the east of the village, through which a Roman road also ran.
Around the middle of the first millennium of our era, the inhabitants of the Périgord had to protect themselves from the military incursions of the Normans , Saracens and other marauding hordes. For this reason, the cavities and abrises cut a few floors above the valley floor in the steep rock faces of the river valleys of the Vézère, Dordogne and their tributaries were used and expanded. For example, the emergence of troglodytic settlements on the cliffs of La Madeleine or the steep face of La Roque Saint-Christophe, both in the Vézère valley, has been documented in the 8th century . Due to their high altitude, their often cumbersome entrances were relatively easy to defend. It can be assumed that such dwellings were used in much earlier times.
The cliffs of La Roque-Gageac were particularly popular because of their orientation to the south, and therefore have a large number of such cave accommodations, which are often connected to one another by corridors carved into the rock.
In 850 the years of uncertainty began for La Roque-Gageac, triggered in particular by the invasions of the Normans with their seaworthy drakkars . These circumstances required the population to protect themselves and to fortify the settlement between the cliffs and the shore.
In the Middle Ages of the 12th century, former dwellings at a higher altitude, after appropriate extensions and reinforcements, became a troglodyte fort , a cave fortress. The small village church dates from the late Romanesque at the end of the 12th century. Its facade was renewed in the 17th century.
In the Hundred Years War (1339-1453), followed by the Wars of Religion (1562-1598), La Roque Gageac was a heavily fortified place of great importance with at least 1,500 residents, three times as many as today. Most of the current structure of the village, including its fortified rock dwellings and cave fortress, dates from this period. The latter was strengthened again in the 17th century before it was razed in the 18th century.
A single preserved tower is the remnant of a larger building, the former palace of the bishops of Sarlat , who at that time already appreciated the location of the village for their purposes.
During the Renaissance period (15th – 16th centuries) the village was structurally improved. The Manoir de Tarde is a reminder of this time and of its former owners, the de Tarde family. Two famous personalities in France come from her, the canon and humanist Jean de Tarde (1561–1636), historian, cartographer, astronomer and mathematician, he was considered one of the most learned men of his time, and the sociologist Gabriel de Tarde (1843–1904) .
Up until the beginning of the twentieth century, inland navigation on the Dordogne and La Roque-Gageac played an important role as a trading center. This was made possible by commercial traffic using traditional flat-bottomed ships, the so-called gabarres, and supplemented by fishing on this fish-rich river.
At the upper end of the steep face a larger light discoloration can be seen, which is reminiscent of the terrible accident in 1957. At that time, a huge rock overhang came loose and plunged into the depths. Its rubble buried part of the village under itself. Six houses were destroyed to their foundations, others suffered damage. The road was closed for two years. Nothing of this can be seen in the village today. The destroyed houses have been restored to look like the old ones, the damage has been removed.
Population development
| year | 1962 | 1968 | 1975 | 1982 | 1990 | 1999 | 2007 | 2016 |
| Residents | 406 | 357 | 373 | 404 | 647 | 449 | 416 | 453 |
| Sources: Cassini and INSEE | ||||||||
Attractions
location
"Squeezed in" between the Dordogne and the vertically rising cliff, the younger houses of the village line up along the narrow promenade. The other mostly older houses are staggered on narrow terraces, in two to four steps behind and on top of each other. The topmost houses partially hit the rock. The alleys and stairs connecting between them exclude vehicles. Here the houses of farmers and craftsmen mingled with the manoirs of wealthy citizens. The ensemble of La Roque-Gageac impresses visitors from every side, but the view from the west, when the evening sun is setting, is generally described as the most beautiful. The most extensive overview of the village and valley is offered by the forecourt of the church above the houses of the village. From here one of the most impressive and historic fortresses of the Périgord, Castelnaud Castle , can be seen.
Manoir de Tarde
The renaissance mansion consists of a cylindrical tower, possibly even older, which is now used as a residential tower, with three storeys and large windows facing south. It is flanked by a residential wing with a pointed gable and cross-frame windows . The middle main street of the village leads under the residential wing, over a passage that is covered by round arches and a barrel vault. Presumably this gate belonged to a former fortification of the village.
church
The simple late Romanesque building towers over the houses of the village. It consists of a nave with two bays and a semicircular rounded apse to the east . The nave was extended once on the south side by two chapels , the width of which takes up almost the entire width of the yoke. The west wall, which was renovated in the 17th century, has a breakthrough with a round arch in its gable, in which a bell hangs. Shortly below, a small wooden canopy in the shape of a hipped roof is attached, which covers two rectangular wall openings. In the forecourt of the church an old stone cross has been erected, the beams of which are simply profiled.
Castle of the Bishops of Sarlat
Only a single tower has survived from him, not far from the Manoir de Tarde.
Cave fortress
The remains of the troglodyte fort , which existed from the 12th to the 18th century, can be viewed again today, but only after overcoming 140 steps that are attached to the outside of the vertical rock face. The fortifications consisted mainly of troglodytic cavities, such as abrises and cave passages, which were closed off from the outside with massive stone walls.
Exotic garden
If you leave the embankment and enter the medieval scenery of the village via a steep staircase, you will soon be immersed in a green and - depending on the season - colorful oasis, in a Mediterranean or even tropical-looking vegetation , that of the Côte d'Azur comes very close and creates an atmosphere similar to the French Midi . The way up is so overgrown with the intense green of the exotic plants that it appears twilight here despite the intense solar radiation. At the highest point of the village you can reach the church, the terrace of which is located in the middle of the Jardin Exotique . La Roque-Gageac is therefore commonly referred to as the “Little Nice” of the Périgord.
- vegetation
Overgrown window
Stone cross in the Jardin-Exotique
Plant wells
Embankment
The roundness and southerly orientation of the high cliff acts as a heat store, which concentrates the intense solar radiation on the village and its gardens at its feet and at the same time stores the thermal energy it collects for a long time and passes it on to the surroundings. In addition, the rock distracts cool winds from the village. Together with the nearby river and the air enriched by it with moisture, this results in extremely favorable microclimatic conditions for a Mediterranean to tropical vegetation.
The following plants, among others, thrive in La Roque-Gageac and largely bring their fruits to maturity:
- Palms: numerous types and sizes
- Oleander ( Nerium oleander ), also called rose laurel: the really big varieties
- Cycads (Cycadales) : different species
- Club lilies (Cordylines australis)
- Yuccas (agave family)
- Squid Aloe (Aloe arborescens)
- Giant bamboo (Phyllostachys heterocycla)
The following crops and crops grow in the region:
- Bananas (Musa) : large species
- Pomegranate or Grenadine (Punica granatum)
- Lemons or limes (citrus)
- Oranges or oranges (Citrus aurantium)
- Olives or real olive trees (Olea europaea)
- Loquat (Eriobotrya japonica)
- Chinese ray pen or kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis var. Deliciosa)
The following flowering plants can be found in the region:
- Mimosa (Mimosa)
- Sleeping tree or silk tree (Albizzia julibrissin)
- Jasmine or real jasmine (Jasminum officinale)
- Passion flower (passiflora)
- Hibiscus or marshmallow (hibiscus)
- Bugainvillea
In addition, a succulent flora develops in the rocky steep slopes :
- Agaves (agave) : large-growing species
- Real aloe (aloe vera)
- Prickly Pear Cacti or Opuntia (Opuntia ficus-indica)
Lemons
Bananas
Flowers, Bugainvillea
wild Wine
Giant bamboo
literature
- Thorsten Droste : Périgord and the Atlantic coast. Art and nature in the Dordogne valley and on the Côte d'Argent from Bordeaux to Biarritz (= DuMont documents. DuMont art travel guide ). 9th edition. DuMont, Cologne 1989, ISBN 3-7701-1197-4 .
- Susanne Böttcher (Ed.): Périgord, Dordogne, Limousin. (= The Green Guide. ) Travel-House-Media, Munich 2006, ISBN 3-8342-8995-7 .
Web links
- Official website of La Roque-Gageac
- La Roque-Gageac on Les plus Beaux Villages de France (French)
Individual evidence
- ↑ La Roque-Gageac on Les plus Beaux Villages de France (French)