Molières-Cavaillac

Molières-Cavaillac
region	Occitania
Department	Gard
Arrondissement	Le Vigan
Canton	Le Vigan
Community association	Pays Viganais
Coordinates	43 ° 59 ′  N , 3 ° 35 ′  E Coordinates: 43 ° 59 ′  N , 3 ° 35 ′  E
height	235-753 m
surface	7.71 km 2
Residents	938 (January 1, 2017)
Population density	122 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code	30120
INSEE code	30170

Molières-Cavaillac is a French commune with 938 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017) in the Gard department in the Occitanie region .

geography

The municipality of Molières-Cavaillac is located in the south of the Cevennes and is largely shaped by the valley of the Arre river . With the villages of Le Vigan and Avèze , which are almost immediately adjacent to the east along the Arre valley , the municipality forms a small agglomeration with several thousand inhabitants, which is located within an otherwise very sparsely populated mountain region. The closest major cities are Montpellier, 74 kilometers to the south, and the city of Nîmes , 86 kilometers to the south-east by road.

In addition to the core town of Molières, located above the river valley, and the town of Cavaillac, which is part of the river plain, the municipality includes the hamlets of Lasfons , Rugnès , Le Buisson and other individual farms. Geologically speaking, the village of Molières is located on a large limestone rock that continues in a westerly direction. The underground of the plain is carbonaceous.

The neighboring municipalities of Molières-Cavaillac are Bréau-Mars in the north, Avèze in the east, Pommiers in the southeast, Montdardier in the south and Arre and Bez-et-Esparon in the west.

Infrastructure

The D999 runs through the valley, heading east via Le Vigan and Avèze to Ganges , from where there are connections to Montpellier and Nîmes. In a westerly direction it runs through sparsely populated areas to the A75 autoroute . The D48 leads north into the almost uninhabited area of Mont Aigoual and connects south to the small villages of the Causse de Blandas .

history

The village was first mentioned in 1162 under the name Moleyrüs . At that time there was a church on site and also some monks. In 1384 there were four households in Molières and a fortification, the layout of which became the church that exists today. The complex at that time had very thick walls and included a bell and clock tower. The name Molières first appeared in a document from 1435. In the 16th century, the place became increasingly home to Protestant Huguenots and was accordingly affected by the wars of religion , in the course of which the Protestant church was destroyed. In 1623 this led to the Huguenots, who were temporarily persecuted in France, claiming the previously Catholic Church for themselves. In 1651, a nobleman named Pierre de Montfaucon took advantage of the general situation, which was marked by unrest and uprisings, to turn the local fortress into a base for a gang of pillagers, which earned him incarceration that lasted until 1668. Molières was also the scene of the Cevennes War, which lasted from 1702 to 1705, and was fortified with walls by Catholic troops in the course of the conflict in 1703. In 1826 the Protestant church was finally rebuilt in its original location.

From 1794 hard coal was extracted on the plain, which was discontinued in 1906. The reason for this was the limited occurrence and the fact that water regularly ran into the mines. Between 1925 and 1931, production was resumed in times of extreme drought on the initiative of the local landowners. The craft of spinning was once widespread in the community and came to an end in 1957. This was supplemented by the silkworm breeding practiced until 1940 . In addition to viticulture, olive trees have also shaped local agriculture for centuries. After many of these trees froze to death in the winter of 1788/1789, this happened again in 1956 and led to the discontinuation of this branch of industry.

From an administrative point of view, on January 26, 1894, the municipal council decided to rename the municipality of Molières to Molières-Cavaillac to avoid confusion with the municipality of Molières-sur-Cèze, which is also in the Gard department . In the late 20th century there was an upward trend in population and economic development. This was accompanied, for example, by the establishment of an activity park with exercise and sports facilities on the banks of the Arre.

Population development

year	1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2006	2013
Residents	364	358	504	617	705	800	921	929

In 1793 the community had 700 inhabitants and maintained this level during the 19th century with certain fluctuations. Of 682 people recorded in 1911, a rapid downward trend began in the decades that followed, reducing the population to an all-time low of just 347 by 1954. From around 1970 the trend was reversed and there followed a sharp increase in the number of residents, through which the number of 900 residents was exceeded in the 2000s. This goes hand in hand with positive economic development and contradicts the regional trend, according to which most of the municipalities are at least not growing and are well below their former population.

Web links

Commons : Molières-Cavaillac  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Mairie de Molières-Cavaillac , annuaire-mairie.fr
2. ↑ ^{a b c d} Histoire , molieres-cavaillac.fr
3. ↑ ^{a b} Molières Cavaillac ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , cc-paysviganais.fr 
4. ↑ Molières-Cavaillac - Notice Communale , cassini.ehess.fr