Bages, Aude

Bages

Coat of arms
Bages

Coordinates: 43°07′27″N 2°59′30″E / 43.1242°N 2.9917°E / 43.1242; 2.9917Coordinates: 43°07′27″N 2°59′30″E / 43.1242°N 2.9917°E / 43.1242; 2.9917
Country France
Region Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées
Department Aude
Arrondissement Narbonne
Canton Narbonne-Sud
Intercommunality Le Grand Narbonne
Government
 • Mayor (2008–2020) Marie Bat
Area1 12.53 km2 (4.84 sq mi)
Population (2010)2 840
 • Density 67/km2 (170/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code 11024 / 11100
Elevation 0–190 m (0–623 ft)
(avg. 36 m or 118 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.

Bages (Bajas in Occitan) is a French commune in the Aude department in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France.

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Bageois or Bageoises.[1]

Geography

Bages is located in the urban area of Narbonne on the Canal de la Robine and the Étang de Bages-Sigean (Bages-Sigean Lake) some 6 km south-west of Narbonne and 9 km north of Portel-des-Corbières. Access to the commune is by the D6009 road from Narbonne which passes through the centre of the commune and continues south to Salses-le-Château. Access to the village in the east of the commune is by road D105 which branches from the D6009 just north of the commune and goes to the village before continuing south to Peyriac-de-Mer. The A9 autoroute passes through the commune from north to south but has no exit in the commune. The nearest exit is Exit  38  some 4 km north of the commune which links to the D6009. Apart from the village there are the hamlets of Les Pesquis, Domaine de Java, and Prat de Cest.[2]

The Étang de Bages-Sigean forms the entire eastern border of the commune with numerous streams flowing from the commune into it such as the Ruisseau Mairal, the Ruisseau de Boutoubouli, and the Ruisseau des Potences. A smaller Lake - the Étang de Saint-Paul - is on the southern border of the commune linked to the much larger Étang de Bages-Sigean with a dam forming the border of the commune.[2]

Neighbouring communes and villages[3]

 Narbonne Narbonne Narbonne
Narbonne Narbonne
   Bages  
Peyriac-de-Mer Gruissan

History

The origins of the site of the present commune date back to prehistoric times. According to historians tools found in Bages attest the presence of man from the Lower Paleolithic (80,000 years ago). Undoubtedly Neanderthal then Cro-Magnon men stayed on the shores of the Narbonne Gulf (sea at the time). The discovery of Neolithic sites proves the existence of significant human communities at that time.[4]

It was under Roman occupation that a real settlement emerged. Many plots of land were distributed to senior army veterans and there were numerous luxurious villae. The origin of the current name is thought to have come from this period: BAÏA or BAÏES in Latin meaning "place of pleasure". Few traces remain of this period and they are often covered by vegetation. The most important are those of "Castellas" and "Monadières" - important Villae from the beginning of that era.

The population of the time left the flat areas to shelter from the wind by moving to the rocky outcrop seen today. This was a slightly dominant defensive position but also the climate and exposure allowed them to live without encroaching on arable land. The Cadran Solaire (Sundial) (11th century ) marks the entrance of the old village. A corner of the Lake can be seen from the narrow and steep streets.

The village of Bages is on the edge of the lake although agriculture, especially the vineyards, forms the core of its economy (the main square of the village dates to the Revolt of the Winemakers in 1907). Bages village is mostly considered as a fishing village.

Heraldry

 The official status of the blazon remains to be determined.

Blazon:
Gules, a fesse fusilly of Or and Vert.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors[5]

From To Name Party Position
1870 1877 Louis Daude
1877 1878 Guilhaume Alberny
1878 1888 Louis Daude
1888 1891 Jean Daude
1891 1892 Auguste Gayraud
1892 1944 Gabriel Cros-Mayrevieille
1944 1945 Joseph Martin
1945 1977 Louis Alberny
1977 1983 René Chevrier
1983 1995 Georges Arcis
1995 2008 Claude Mulero
2008 2020 Marie Bat

(Not all data is known)

Demography

In 2010 the commune had 840 inhabitants. The evolution of the number of inhabitants is known from the population censuses conducted in the commune since 1793. From the 21st century, a census of communes with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants is held every five years, unlike larger communes that have a sample survey every year.[Note 1]

Population Change (See database)
1793 1800 1806 1821 1831 1836 1841 1846 1851
716 699 698 742 875 900 864 864 876
1856 1861 1866 1872 1876 1881 1886 1891 1896
805 881 924 1,018 1,146 1,193 1,163 1,137 1,136
1901 1906 1911 1921 1926 1931 1936 1946 1954
1,124 1,022 1,030 917 799 791 711 542 549
1962 1968 1975 1982 1990 1999 2006 2010 -
559 558 572 547 694 755 - 840 -

Sources : Ldh/EHESS/Cassini until 1962, INSEE database from 1968 (population without double counting and municipal population from 2006)

Economy

Flamingos at Bages
A Flamingo at Bages

Art is prominent in the commune with Painters, sculptors, visual artists, musicians, storytellers, and cabinet makers drawing inspiration. There are two permanent Art galleries: La Maison des Arts and L'Etang Art which also has publishing activity through Les Temps d'Art Graphique.

The commune is in the zone of the Vin de pays des Coteaux du Littoral Audois (Local wine of Coteaux du Littoral Audois)

In the fishing village the main produce is eel which is prepared in bouillabaisse style.

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

Religious heritage

The Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects:

Notable people linked to the commune

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ At the beginning of the 21st century, the methods of identification have been modified by Law No. 2002-276 of 27 February 2002, the so-called "law of local democracy" and in particular Title V "census operations" allows, after a transitional period running from 2004 to 2008, the annual publication of the legal population of the different French administrative districts. For communes with a population greater than 10,000 inhabitants, a sample survey is conducted annually, the entire territory of these communes is taken into account at the end of the period of five years. The first "legal population" after 1999 under this new law came into force on 1 January 2009 and was based on the census of 2006.

References

  1. ↑ Inhabitants of Aude (French)
  2. 1 2 Google Maps
  3. ↑ Géoportail, IGN (French)
  4. ↑ Jean Guiffan, History of Bages and its inhabitants, Éditions Élysiques, 2007, 233 pages, paperback, ISBN 2-9528777-0-X, ISBN 978-2952877701 (French)
  5. ↑ List of Mayors of France (French)
  6. ↑ Ministry of Culture, Palissy IM11000052 Monument of the Republic (French)
  7. ↑ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000620 Statue: Saint Delphine of Sabran (French)
  8. ↑ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000619 2 Statues: Saints Martin of Tours and Paul of Narbonne (French)
  9. ↑ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000618 Painting: Christ on the cross between Saints Paul of Narbonne and Martin of Tours (French)
  10. ↑ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM11000617 Thurible (French)

Bibliography

External links

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