Aubais
Encyclopedia
Aubais is a commune
in the Gard
department in southern France
.
The little town is in an about 20 km distance from Nîmes
and Aigues-Mortes
. The recreation area of La Grande-Motte
is reachable also in a distance of about 20 km.
In the 14th century Aubais had two high feudalsquare towers, the forerunner of the north wing of the present castle, around them were grouped a few houses. At the same time the Mill Quarry was built up on the banks of river Vidourle - today still on the territory of Aubais. Designed for milling grain, the visitor still finds the machicolations stones and bosses who remain. Beautifully restored today, it is an exhibition and leisure site and its water is the setting for a canoe-kayak club.
The Chapel of St. Nazaire Massillargues parish in Aubais was also for the first time mentioned in the thirteenth century and still remains open for worship during special events.
In the 14th century and the following the village sufferd like many other various scourges of pestilence, wars and robbery before being reborn in XVlth Century to a more normal activity.
In the 17th century Baron Louis de Baschi, a Tuscan native, began building the central corps and the staircase of the castle, but because Protestant, suspended the work and left the country after the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes
. His son, Charles Baschi, whose lands are located in Marquessate Aubais continued the construction of the Castle with its two wings, and enlarged the court of honor. Very degraded by the Revolution and over time the property of 19 different owners, the castle suffered from neglect. The lands of the Marquis of Aubais stretched far out of town, encompassing such Gavernes, Christin, Junas and others, and residents of Center Aubais stating they were AUBAIS MEMA (Aubais of same) . The term comes from being included on the signs entering the village.
. Nearby are the excavations of the Gallo-Roman oppidum
Ambrussum
with a single arch of a Roman bridge over the river Vidourle
which was painted by the French painter Gustave Courbet
when he hiked at that time the Languedoc. Courbet's former route can today be hiked on the official trail Route Courbet.
was born in Aubais on September 5, 1885 in Aubais and died on September 12, 1952 in Paris
. He was a historian, curator of both the Cernuschi- and Guimet-Museums in Paris
, and a member of the prestigious Académie française
(French Academy).
The painter Claude Viallat
was born in Nîmes
in 1936 and grew up in Aubais.
Major rehabilitation operations were carried out recently by efforts of "Building Insertion" on buildings or sites aubaisiens, including the Old Mill Quarry, Halls vaulted Castle, and more recently Chapel St. Nazaire. Searches of the immediate area have helped to update the foundations and the remains of a cemetery of the eleventh century.
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Gard
Gard
Gard is a département located in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region.The department is named after the River Gard, although the formerly Occitan name of the River Gard, Gardon, has been replacing the traditional French name in recent decades, even among French speakers.- History...
department in southern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
The little town is in an about 20 km distance from Nîmes
Nîmes
Nîmes is the capital of the Gard department in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France. Nîmes has a rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire, and is a popular tourist destination.-History:...
and Aigues-Mortes
Aigues-Mortes
Aigues-Mortes is a commune in the Gard department in southern France.The medieval city walls surrounding the city are well preserved.-History:...
. The recreation area of La Grande-Motte
La Grande-Motte
La Grande-Motte is a commune in the Hérault département in Languedoc-Roussillon in southern France. It is a popular seaside resort and port, built in the 1960s and 1970s on a greenfield site, La Grande-Motte is characterized by a homogeneous architecture, the most visible are the buildings in the...
is reachable also in a distance of about 20 km.
History
Long before the Roman occupation, there are remnants of homes on the site Aubais, but virtually nothing, then, to approach the Middle Ages. The first time the specific word Albaisa (Alba, inspired by the white cliff on which the village is situated) is raised in 1096, marking the real beginning of the village's identity. It coincides with the construction of a watchtower followed some hundred years later by a castle and the errection of some houses at the site of the current Place des Halles.In the 14th century Aubais had two high feudalsquare towers, the forerunner of the north wing of the present castle, around them were grouped a few houses. At the same time the Mill Quarry was built up on the banks of river Vidourle - today still on the territory of Aubais. Designed for milling grain, the visitor still finds the machicolations stones and bosses who remain. Beautifully restored today, it is an exhibition and leisure site and its water is the setting for a canoe-kayak club.
The Chapel of St. Nazaire Massillargues parish in Aubais was also for the first time mentioned in the thirteenth century and still remains open for worship during special events.
In the 14th century and the following the village sufferd like many other various scourges of pestilence, wars and robbery before being reborn in XVlth Century to a more normal activity.
In the 17th century Baron Louis de Baschi, a Tuscan native, began building the central corps and the staircase of the castle, but because Protestant, suspended the work and left the country after the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes
Edict of Nantes
The Edict of Nantes, issued on 13 April 1598, by Henry IV of France, granted the Calvinist Protestants of France substantial rights in a nation still considered essentially Catholic. In the Edict, Henry aimed primarily to promote civil unity...
. His son, Charles Baschi, whose lands are located in Marquessate Aubais continued the construction of the Castle with its two wings, and enlarged the court of honor. Very degraded by the Revolution and over time the property of 19 different owners, the castle suffered from neglect. The lands of the Marquis of Aubais stretched far out of town, encompassing such Gavernes, Christin, Junas and others, and residents of Center Aubais stating they were AUBAIS MEMA (Aubais of same) . The term comes from being included on the signs entering the village.
Main sights
Dominated by a castle from the Renaissance and Baroque period the medieval town is situated on a ridge and offers from some places a view over the vineyards and hills of the area up to the river VidourleVidourle
The Vidourle is a river in southern France, flowing into the Mediterranean Sea in Le Grau-du-Roi. Its source is in the Cévennes mountains, northwest of Saint-Hippolyte-du-Fort, at Saint-Roman-de-Codières. It flows generally southeast...
. Nearby are the excavations of the Gallo-Roman oppidum
Oppidum
Oppidum is a Latin word meaning the main settlement in any administrative area of ancient Rome. The word is derived from the earlier Latin ob-pedum, "enclosed space," possibly from the Proto-Indo-European *pedóm-, "occupied space" or "footprint."Julius Caesar described the larger Celtic Iron Age...
Ambrussum
Ambrussum
Ambrussum is a Roman archaeological site in Villetelle, Hérault département, in southern France.It is close to the modern town Lunel, between Nîmes and Montpellier...
with a single arch of a Roman bridge over the river Vidourle
Vidourle
The Vidourle is a river in southern France, flowing into the Mediterranean Sea in Le Grau-du-Roi. Its source is in the Cévennes mountains, northwest of Saint-Hippolyte-du-Fort, at Saint-Roman-de-Codières. It flows generally southeast...
which was painted by the French painter Gustave Courbet
Gustave Courbet
Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet was a French painter who led the Realist movement in 19th-century French painting. The Realist movement bridged the Romantic movement , with the Barbizon School and the Impressionists...
when he hiked at that time the Languedoc. Courbet's former route can today be hiked on the official trail Route Courbet.
People
René GroussetRené Grousset
René Grousset was a French historian, curator of both the Cernuschi and Guimet Museums in Paris, and a member of the prestigious Académie française...
was born in Aubais on September 5, 1885 in Aubais and died on September 12, 1952 in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. He was a historian, curator of both the Cernuschi- and Guimet-Museums in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and a member of the prestigious Académie française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
(French Academy).
The painter Claude Viallat
Claude Viallat
Claude Viallat is a French contemporary painter.-Biography:Born in Nîmes, he grew up in Aubais, a French village with a strong bull tradition...
was born in Nîmes
Nîmes
Nîmes is the capital of the Gard department in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France. Nîmes has a rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire, and is a popular tourist destination.-History:...
in 1936 and grew up in Aubais.
Today
Major efforts have been made in equipment or social associations. The comprehensive Socio-Educational Center of the village includes a theatre and many rooms for judo, binding, dance and further cultural activities.Major rehabilitation operations were carried out recently by efforts of "Building Insertion" on buildings or sites aubaisiens, including the Old Mill Quarry, Halls vaulted Castle, and more recently Chapel St. Nazaire. Searches of the immediate area have helped to update the foundations and the remains of a cemetery of the eleventh century.
External links
- Route Courbet http://museefabre.montpellier-agglo.com/pdf.php/?filePath=var/storage/original/application/97c8146a65b397b60cc7b4653cc33234.pdf
- Pont romain d'Ambrussumhttp://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM4F2V_Pont_romain_dAmbrussum_Pont_Ambroix_Villetelle_France
- Pont romain d'Ambrussum painted by Gustave Courbethttp://www.poster-und-kunstdrucke.de/images/product-pics/artist/courbet/courbet_pont_dambrussum.jpg
- Satellite photo of Aubais
- Satellite photo of Ambrussumhttp://maps.google.de/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=de&geocode=&q=Chemin+d'Ambrussum,+34400+Villetelle,+H%C3%A9rault,+Languedoc-Roussillon,+Frankreich&sll=43.71845,4.149377&sspn=0.005482,0.009602&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Chemin+d'Ambrussum,+34400+Villetelle,+H%C3%A9rault,+Languedoc-Roussillon,+Frankreich&ll=43.715845,4.151587&spn=0.005451,0.009602&t=h&z=17
- Lulu Le Prêt (citizen of Aubais) reports about the town's social life and its restaurants http://www.the-languedoc-page.com/articles/languedoc-villages-aubais.htm
