Villefagnan

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Villefagnan
Villefagnan's coat of arms
Villefagnan (France)
Villefagnan
region Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department Charente
Arrondissement Confolens
Canton Charente North
Community association Val de Charente
Coordinates 46 ° 1 ′  N , 0 ° 5 ′  E Coordinates: 46 ° 1 ′  N , 0 ° 5 ′  E
height 88-158 m
surface 23.65 km 2
Residents 999 (January 1, 2017)
Population density 42 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code 16240
INSEE code 16409

Villefagnan - Logis des Tours

Villefagnan ( Occitan : identical) is a place and a community with 999 inhabitants (at January 1, 2017) in western France Charente in the region Nouvelle-Aquitaine . The community consists of several hamlets ( hameaux ) and individual farmsteads .

location

The place Villefagnan is at an altitude of about 120 m above sea level. d. M. in the north of the old cultural landscape of the Angoumois at a short distance from the Deux-Sèvres department . The place is about 51 km (driving distance) in a northerly direction from the city of Angoulême ; to Poitiers is about 77 km in a north-easterly direction. The municipality is located on the Villefagnan plain , a bird sanctuary of the Natura 2000 project . The river Bief crosses the municipality.

Population development

year 1800 1851 1901 1954 1999 2016
Residents 1615 1550 1404 1017 1022 1009

The continuous decline in population in the 20th century is essentially due to the consequences of the phylloxera crisis in viticulture and the increasing mechanization of agriculture .

economy

The place and its surroundings were dominated by agriculture for centuries; Most of the people lived on the produce of their fields and gardens as self-sufficient ; On the rather barren and stony soils, livestock was raised on a large scale. Craftsmen and small traders also settled in the village. In the late Middle Ages and early modern times, viticulture was promoted, but - after the phylloxera crisis in the late 19th and early 20th centuries - it is no longer important today. Since the 1960s tourism has played a not insignificant role in the economic life of the municipality in the form of renting out holiday homes ( gîtes ).

history

In ancient times, the region belonged to the settlement area of ​​the Celtic pictons , who were subjugated by Caesar during the Gallic War . Gallo-Roman finds (bricks etc.) prove a permanent settlement during this time.

The first mention by name ( Villa Fagna ) comes from the year 855. Until the French Revolution , the church of the village belonged to the diocese of Poitiers ; the bishops owned the Château Lesvescault here , of which the gate of the wall ring is still preserved. In the 17th century, Villefagnan came under the influence of Protestantism . One of the " sons of the city " known worldwide is the tenor Georges Jouatte , born here in 1892, who worked at the Paris Opera House from 1934 to 1946 .

Attractions

Grain hall
  • The parish church of Saint-Pierre dates back to the 12th century. After the end of the Hundred Years War (1337-1453), a side aisle was added to the south side of the nave ; In addition, the crossing tower was raised and the buttresses on the outer walls were reinforced.
  • Only the gate flanked by two towers remains of the former episcopal castle ( Château Lesvescault ). It was classified as a Monument historique in 1951 .
  • The Protestant temple with its two-tower facade was built in 1859; it is the fifth Reformed church in the town and was classified as a monument historique in 1998 .
  • The grain hall ( halle aux grains ), completed in 1868, was once the mercantile center of the town.
outside
  • Of the ten windmills ( moulins á vent ) in the area, only one still exists, which was restored at the end of the 20th century and converted into a holiday home ( gîte ).

Web links

Commons : Villefagnan  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Villefagnan - Viticulture
  2. ↑ Logis des Tours, Villefagnan in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)
  3. ^ Temple, Villefagnan in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)