Auch

For the bird, see great auk. For the European surname, see Auch (name).
Auch

Cathedral

Coat of arms
Auch

Coordinates: 43°38′47″N 0°35′08″E / 43.6465°N 0.5855°E / 43.6465; 0.5855Coordinates: 43°38′47″N 0°35′08″E / 43.6465°N 0.5855°E / 43.6465; 0.5855
Country France
Region Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées
Department Gers
Arrondissement Auch
Intercommunality Grand Auch
Government
 • Mayor (2008–2014) Franck Montaugé
Area1 72.48 km2 (27.98 sq mi)
Population (2012)2 21,960
 • Density 300/km2 (780/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code 32013 / 32000
Elevation 115–281 m (377–922 ft)
(avg. 166 m or 545 ft)

1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Auch (French pronunciation: ​[oʃ]; Gascon: Aush or Aux [aʊʃ]) is a commune in southwestern France. Located in the region of Midi-Pyrénées, it is the capital of the Gers department. Auch is the historical capital of Gascony.

Geography

Localization

Auch and its surrounding communes

Hydrography

The River Gers flows through the town.

Transportation

Auch is well connected to nearby cities and towns such as Agen, Toulouse and Tarbes by Routes Nationales.

Climate

Climate data for Auch (1981–2010 averages)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 20.9
(69.6)		 24.3
(75.7)		 27.8
(82)		 29.4
(84.9)		 33.7
(92.7)		 38.4
(101.1)		 38.4
(101.1)		 40.9
(105.6)		 38.0
(100.4)		 31.2
(88.2)		 26.5
(79.7)		 21.8
(71.2)		 40.9
(105.6)
Average high °C (°F) 10.2
(50.4)		 11.8
(53.2)		 15.1
(59.2)		 17.6
(63.7)		 21.5
(70.7)		 25.3
(77.5)		 27.9
(82.2)		 27.9
(82.2)		 24.9
(76.8)		 19.9
(67.8)		 13.7
(56.7)		 10.4
(50.7)		 18.9
(66)
Average low °C (°F) 1.5
(34.7)		 1.7
(35.1)		 3.9
(39)		 6.2
(43.2)		 10.0
(50)		 13.4
(56.1)		 15.2
(59.4)		 14.9
(58.8)		 12.0
(53.6)		 9.1
(48.4)		 4.8
(40.6)		 2.1
(35.8)		 7.9
(46.2)
Record low °C (°F) −17.6
(0.3)		 −13.6
(7.5)		 −10.5
(13.1)		 −3.7
(25.3)		 0.5
(32.9)		 2.6
(36.7)		 7.3
(45.1)		 3.6
(38.5)		 2.5
(36.5)		 −3.5
(25.7)		 −10.5
(13.1)		 −12.4
(9.7)		 −17.6
(0.3)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 57.8
(2.276)		 50.2
(1.976)		 50.9
(2.004)		 66.1
(2.602)		 67.8
(2.669)		 56.6
(2.228)		 52.5
(2.067)		 61.6
(2.425)		 53.4
(2.102)		 61.6
(2.425)		 60.2
(2.37)		 58.9
(2.319)		 697.6
(27.465)
Average precipitation days 9.6 7.6 8.4 11.1 9.5 7.7 6.0 6.5 7.5 9.1 9.4 8.7 101.1
Mean monthly sunshine hours 92.4 111.0 167.6 176.6 196.8 209.8 234.6 223.6 197.2 145.2 94.5 79.4 1,928.6
Source: Météo France[1][2]

History

Auch is a very ancient town, whose settlement was noted by the Romans during their conquest of the area in the 50s BC. At that time, it was settled by an Aquitanian tribe known to the Romans as the Ausci. Their name for the town was Climberrum[3] or Elimberris.[4] This has been tentatively etymologized from the Iberian iltir ("town, oppidum") and a cognate of the Basque berri ("new"), although another Iberian settlement in Granada recorded by the Romans as "Iliberi" probably had no contact with proto-Basque speaking peoples. Following their conquest, the Romans renamed the town Augusta Auscorum or Ausciorum ("Augusta of the Ausci"). Augusta Auscorum was one of the twelve civitates of the province of Novempopulana (Gascony) and became the provincial capital after the 409 destruction of Eauze by the Vandals.

The common term Augusta was eventually dropped and the name evolved into the modern Gascon Aush and French Auch.

The town became the seat of a Catholic archdiocese which lasted until the French Revolution. Its archbishops claimed the title of Primate of Aquitaine, Novempopulana, and Navarre.

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±%
17938,444—    
18007,696−8.9%
18068,918+15.9%
18219,670+8.4%
18319,801+1.4%
184110,867+10.9%
184612,323+13.4%
185112,141−1.5%
185612,001−1.2%
186111,899−0.8%
186612,500+5.1%
187213,087+4.7%
187613,785+5.3%
188114,186+2.9%
188615,090+6.4%
189114,782−2.0%
189614,838+0.4%
190113,939−6.1%
190613,526−3.0%
191113,638+0.8%
192111,825−13.3%
192612,272+3.8%
193112,567+2.4%
193613,313+5.9%
194615,253+14.6%
195416,382+7.4%
196218,918+15.5%
196821,462+13.4%
197523,185+8.0%
198223,258+0.3%
199023,136−0.5%
199921,838−5.6%
200821,744−0.4%
201221,960+1.0%

Sites of interest

Auch is known for its Renaissance Cathédrale Sainte-Marie with its magnificent organ, carved stalls and rose stained-glass windows, La Tour d'Armagnac – a 14th-century prison, as well as a statue of d'Artagnan who was based on the real life person, Charles de Batz, Comte d'Artagnan born nearby in the château de Castelmore, and written about by Alexandre Dumas.

Notable people

Auch was the birthplace of:

Literature

Auch is a location briefly mentioned in the M.R. James short ghost story Canon Alberic's Scrap-Book published in Ghost Stories of an Antiquary in 1904

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Données climatiques de la station de Auch" (in French). Meteo France. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Climat Midi-Pyrénées" (in French). Meteo France. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
  3. ↑ " Baynes, T.S., ed. (1878). "Auch". Encyclopædia Britannica 3 (9th ed.). p. 67.
  4. ↑ "Auch" in the Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th ed. 1911.

References

External links

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