Sainte-Bazeille

Sainte-Bazeille ; Senta Vaselha
region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Lot-et-Garonne
Arrondissement	Marmande ( sub-prefecture )
Canton	Marmande-1
Community association	Val de Garonne agglomeration
Coordinates	44 ° 32 ' N , 0 ° 6' E Coordinates: 44 ° 32 ' N , 0 ° 6' E
height	12-87 m
surface	20.67 km 2
Residents	3,136 (January 1, 2017)
Population density	152 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code	47180
INSEE code	47233
Website	Sainte-Bazeille
	; Sainte-Bazeille-Church

Sainte-Bazeille - Church from the southeast

Sainte-Bazeille ( Occitan Senta Vaselha ) is a small town and the capital of several hamlets existing and farmsteads southern French municipality with 3136 inhabitants (as of January 1 2017) in the department of Lot-et-Garonne in the region Nouvelle-Aquitaine .

Location and climate

Sainte-Bazeille is located in the historic province of Agenais approx. 75 km northwest of the city of Agen at an altitude of almost 30 m on the Garonne River , into which the Gupie flows approx. 1 km away . The wine-growing region of the Côtes du Marmandais extends into the municipality. The climate is mild and largely shaped by the Atlantic ; Rain (approx. 850 mm / year) falls over the year.

Population development

year	1800	1851	1901	1954	1999	2017
Residents	2,340	2,790	1,998	1,789	2,656	3.136
Sources: Cassini and INSEE

The phylloxera crisis in viticulture and the loss of jobs due to the mechanization of agriculture have led to a continuous decline in population since the second half of the 19th century, which has been reversed since the 1950s.

economy

For centuries, the residents of the community lived on the produce of their fields and gardens, self-sufficient ; cattle breeding and viticulture were also carried out. Craftsmen, small traders and service providers settled in the village. Since the 1960s, some of the vacant houses, but also new buildings, have been used as holiday apartments ( gîtes ) . The municipality has been part of the Côtes du Marmandais wine-growing region since 1990 .

history

The place, which was probably founded in Roman or Gallo-Roman times , bears the name of Bazilla , an early Christian martyr . In the early Middle Ages there were attacks by the Visigoths , the Saracens and the Vikings . Probably already at this time the place was surrounded by walls and wooden palisades . During the Hundred Years War (1337-1453) between France and England, the place changed the landlord several times. In the 15th and 16th centuries it belonged to the manor of the Albret family , whose property fell to the French crown when Henry IV (ruled 1589–1610) came to power as King of France .

Attractions

The single-nave church of Sainte-Bazeille probably existed as early as the 6th or 7th century and is surrounded by an old cemetery that was already in use in Merovingian times; its walls, which were enlarged in the 11th or 12th century, are made of rubble and bricks (brique et pierre) in the ancient Roman style. The otherwise unadorned facade is raised by a two-part bell gable (clocher mur) . The simple but impressive building has been recognized as a monument historique since 1983 .

The Romanesque church of Sainte-Madeleine , located in the center of the village, received a bell tower (clocher) with a pointed stone helmet and a side aisle on the north side in the 15th century . With the exception of the bell tower, the old church was largely torn down at the end of the 19th century and fundamentally redesigned in the following years; it is now consecrated to the Mother of God Mary (Notre-Dame) . The slogans of the revolutionary era Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité are on both portals . The building was included in the inventory of the Monuments historiques in 1983.