Saugues
| Saugues | ||
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| region | Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes | |
| Department | Haute Loire | |
| Arrondissement | Brioude | |
| Canton | Gorges de l'Allier-Gévaudan | |
| Community association | Rives du Haut Allier | |
| Coordinates | 44 ° 58 ′ N , 3 ° 33 ′ E | |
| height | 661-1,483 m | |
| surface | 78.80 km 2 | |
| Residents | 1,736 (January 1, 2017) | |
| Population density | 22 inhabitants / km 2 | |
| Post Code | 43170 | |
| INSEE code | 43234 | |
| Website | Community website | |
 View of Saugues |
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The French community Saugues is located in the department of Haute-Loire in the region Auvergne Rhône-Alpes . The place with 1736 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017) is on the GR 65 long-distance hiking trail , which largely follows the historical course of the French Way of St. James Via Podiensis .
Geography and traffic
Saugues is located in the Massif Central and is the capital of the canton of the same name . It lies on the border between the Lozère and Ardèche departments on the Margeride high plateau . The Seuge River , a tributary of the Allier, flows through the village . The nearest major French cities are Lyon (134 km) in the northeast, Toulouse (225 km) in the southwest, Bordeaux (326 km) in the west and Montpellier (152 km) in the south.
The next train station is in Monistrol-d'Allier and can be reached via the D589 , in an easterly direction, after about 16 kilometers by road. The two departmental roads D589 and D585 cross in Saugues .
history
Saugues is the former capital of County Gévaudan . The bishops of Mende and the lords of Mercœur ruled there from the 12th century . They continuously drove the development of the city. Only one tower from the 13th century remains of the medieval fortifications. The historic center of the city was destroyed by fire in 1788.
In the mountains around the town of Saugues, on the eve of the revolution, the well-known beast of Gévaudan raged . Today a huge wooden sculpture of the beast looks down on the town next to the D589 from a hill.
On May 14, 1652, with the approval of Bishop Marcillac von Mende, the brotherhood of the "Wise Brothers" was founded. During the great plague that raged in the county of Gévaudan in 1721 , this brotherhood vowed to hold a procession to the pilgrimage site “To Our Lady of Estours” every Whit Monday. Today the members of the brotherhood march through the town in procession on Maundy Thursday.
Way of St. James ( Via Podiensis )
Because of its good infrastructure, Saugues is often recommended as a stage destination on the Via Podiensis . In addition to the tourist information, there is a hotel and a restaurant as well as several stage hostels for pilgrims (French: Gîte d'étape ). The next larger town on the Camino de Santiago is Saint-Alban-sur-Limagnole . The route via the D33 , D335 and D987 leads there as a direct road connection . The Via Podiensis reaches its highest point at 1304 m near the Saint-Roch chapel behind the village of Chanaleilles. The chapel on the border between the Haute-Loire and Lozère departments is intended to commemorate the former hospice, which was built there in 1198.
Attractions
- Tour de Anglais . The keep of a former castle from the 14th century dominates the old town, which is rich in beautiful old houses. Today it houses the local history museum. The upper platform of the tower can be stepped on and offers a good overview of the surroundings. The tower owes its name to an English knight who died here in 1380 and was buried in the Gothic cemetery.
- The Saint-Médard Collegiate Church . It was essentially built as a Gothic building in the 16th century. Its current appearance is shaped by the changes in the 19th century. It is surmounted by an octagonal tower. It houses some treasures worth seeing: including a Madonna from the 12th century, a Pietà from the 15th century and three silver processional crosses from the 15th and 16th centuries, which were made by the silversmiths in Le Puy-en-Velay .
- The Museum of the Beast of Gévaudan . It tells the terrible story of the Gévaudan beast, who terrified the region around Saugues between 1764 and 1767. 24 scenes in the form of plaster figures bring the atmosphere of that time to life.
Personalities
- Saint Noël Chabanel (1613–1649), Jesuit and missionary murdered in Canada.
- Joachim Barrande (1799–1883), geologist and father of paleontology, born in Saugues.
- Bénilde Romançon (1805–1862), canonized religious, worked in Saugues
- Abbot François Fabre (1854–1932), priest and historian.
- Gires Lucien (1937–2002), painter, sculptor who created the sculptures in the Museum of the Beast of Gévaudan .
Town twinning
Saugues has had a partnership with the municipality of Modave in Belgium since 1992 .
literature
- Bettina Forst: French Way of St. James. From Le Puy-en-Velay to Roncesvalles. All stages - with variants and height profiles (= Rother hiking guide ). Bergverlag Rother, Munich (recte: Ottobrunn) 2007, ISBN 978-3-7633-4350-8 .
- 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
- Pictures along the Via Podiensis ( Memento from January 31, 2013 in the web archive archive.today )
- Along the Via Podiensis
Individual evidence
- ↑ Congregational information on annuaire-mairie.fr (French). Retrieved on January 21, 2010
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