Largentière
Encyclopedia
Largentière is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Ardèche
department in the Rhône-Alpes
region
in southern France
.
It is located in the narrow valley of the Ligne River, approximately ten kilometres southwest of Aubenas
.
It claims to be the smallest sub-prefecture in France.
Its name, adopted in the thirteenth century in place of its more ancient name Segualeriae (Ségualières), refers to the silver mines in the area between the tenth and fifteenth centuries, when the silver-bearing lead ores in intrusive veins in the Largentières sandstone were exploited under the authority of the Counts of Toulouse and the Bishops of Viviers, whose title barons de Largentière was linked to the bishopric.
. Its only railroad station was rased in 1982, leaving the town accessible only by road.
, the picturesque town conserves its thirteenth-century church, Nôtre-Dame-des-Pommiers, its Renaissance hôtel de ville
, its palais de justice, and the Tour Argentière that collected the mines' produce for guarded transport.
Ardèche
Ardèche is a department in south-central France named after the Ardèche River.- History :The area has been inhabited by humans at least since the Upper Paleolithic, as attested by the famous cave paintings at Chauvet Pont d'Arc. The plateau of the Ardeche River has extensive standing stones ,...
department in the Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes is one of the 27 regions of France, located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the Rhône River and the Alps mountain range. Its capital, Lyon, is the second-largest metropolitan area in France after Paris...
region
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...
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...
.
It is located in the narrow valley of the Ligne River, approximately ten kilometres southwest of Aubenas
Aubenas
Aubenas is a commune in the southern part of the Ardèche department in the Rhône Valley in southern France.It is the seat of several government offices...
.
It claims to be the smallest sub-prefecture in France.
Its name, adopted in the thirteenth century in place of its more ancient name Segualeriae (Ségualières), refers to the silver mines in the area between the tenth and fifteenth centuries, when the silver-bearing lead ores in intrusive veins in the Largentières sandstone were exploited under the authority of the Counts of Toulouse and the Bishops of Viviers, whose title barons de Largentière was linked to the bishopric.
Population
Economy and transportation
A busy industrial town in the nineteenth century, when it housed silk mills its principal industry is now tourismTourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
. Its only railroad station was rased in 1982, leaving the town accessible only by road.
Sights
Besides its twelfth- to fifteenth-century châteauChâteau
A château is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor or a country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally—and still most frequently—in French-speaking regions...
, the picturesque town conserves its thirteenth-century church, Nôtre-Dame-des-Pommiers, its Renaissance hôtel de ville
Seat of local government
In local government, a city hall, town hall or a municipal building or civic centre, is the chief administrative building of a city...
, its palais de justice, and the Tour Argentière that collected the mines' produce for guarded transport.
Personalities
- Joseph ben Abba Mari ben Joseph ben Jacob Caspi (1279—1340), a prominent Jewish medieval philosopher.