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For the town in the Gers département, see Beaucaire, Gers.

Coordinates: 43°48′29″N 4°38′39″E / 43.8080555556, 4.64416666667

Commune of Beaucaire

View down into Beaucaire and the marina from the bridge leading to Tarascon. A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system.

Location
Beaucaire, Gard (France)
Beaucaire, Gard
Administration
Country France
Region Languedoc-Roussillon
Department Gard
Arrondissement Nîmes
Canton Beaucaire (chief town)
Mayor Mireille Cellier
Statistics
Elevation 1 m–156 m
(avg. Wikipedia talkFeatured lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->This list of countries, arranged alphabetically This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. France is divided into 26 regions or régions (in French of which 21 are in continental Metropolitan France, one is the island of Corsica, Languedoc-Roussillon ( Occitan: Lengadòc-Rosselhon; Catalan: Llenguadoc-Rosselló) is one of the 26 regions of France. In the context of the political and geographic organization of France and many of its former colonies a department (département depaʁtǝmɑ̃ is an Administrative division Gard ( Occitan: Gard) is a département located in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region The 100 French departments are divided into 342 arrondissements, which may be translated into English as districts. The arrondissement of Nîmes is an arrondissement of France located in the Gard department, in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. The cantons of France are territorial subdivisions of the French Republic's 341 arrondissements and 100 departments. A mayor (from the Latin māior, meaning "greater" is a modern title used in many countries for the highest ranking officer in a municipal government The elevation of a Geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point often the mean sea level. 18 m)
Land area¹ 86. 52 km²
Population²
(1999)		 13,748
 - Density 159/km² (1999)
Miscellaneous
INSEE/Postal code 30032/ 30300
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0. As of January 1, 2008, 64473140 people live in the French Republic. Population density (in agriculture standing stock and Standing crop) is a measurement of Population per unit area or unit volume The INSEE code is a numerical indexing code used by the French National Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE to identify various entities including communes Postal codes were introduced in France in 1972, when La Poste introduced automated sorting. Square Kilometre ( US spelling square kilometer) symbol km2, is a decimal multiple of the SI unit of 386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. The square mile is an imperial and US unit of Area equal the area of a square of one statute mile. An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open
2 Population sans doubles comptes: residents of multiple communes (e.g. students and military personnel) only counted once. C D E
France

Beaucaire is a small town and commune in southern France, in the Gard département of Languedoc-Roussillon. The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Gard ( Occitan: Gard) is a département located in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region In the context of the political and geographic organization of France and many of its former colonies a department (département depaʁtǝmɑ̃ is an Administrative division Languedoc-Roussillon ( Occitan: Lengadòc-Rosselhon; Catalan: Llenguadoc-Rosselló) is one of the 26 regions of France. Population (1999): 13,748.

Contents

Geography

Beaucaire is located on the Rhône River, opposite the town of Tarascon, which is in Bouches-du-Rhône département of Provence. The Rhone, or the Rhône is one of the major Rivers of Europe, running through Switzerland and France. Tarascon, sometimes referred to as Tarascon-sur-Rhône, is a town and commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( Occitan: Bocas de Ròse, lit "Mouths of the Rhône River" is a department in the south of France named after the Provence ( Provençal Occitan: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm is a region of southeastern France Area: 86,52 km².

Neighboring communes:

View over the Rhône, looking upstream from the Pont de Beaucaire, with a view of Beaucaire Castle.
View over the Rhône, looking upstream from the Pont de Beaucaire, with a view of Beaucaire Castle. Bellegarde is a commune in the Garde[[Departments of France|départment]] in southern France. Comps is a commune in the Gard department in southern France. Fourques is a commune in the Gard department in southern France. Jonquières-Saint-Vincent is a commune in the Gard department in southern France. Manduel is a commune in the Gard department in southern France. Redessan is a commune in the Gard department in southern France. Tarascon, sometimes referred to as Tarascon-sur-Rhône, is a town and commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône Vallabrègues is a commune in the Gard department in southern France.

Sights

History & Culture

Etymology

'Beaucaire' probably is the French version of the Occitan name 'Belcaire':

There is a village in the département of Aude called Belcaire. In the context of the political and geographic organization of France and many of its former colonies a department (département depaʁtǝmɑ̃ is an Administrative division Aude ( Occitan: Aude) is a department in south-central France named after the Aude River. Belcaire is a commune in the French département of Aude, part of the ancient Languedoc province Moreover, the most similar language to Occitan is Catalan, and there are two towns in nearby Catalonia called 'Bellcaire' (where bell means 'Beautiful' and caire means also Cut stone or rock in Catalan): Bellcaire d'Empordà and Bellcaire d'Urgell. Occitan ( IPA BrE: /ˈɒksɪtn/ AmE: /ˈɑksəˌtɑn/ known also as Lenga d'òc or Langue d'oc (native name occitan Catalan ˈkætəˌlæn ( català kətəˈla or) is a Romance language, the national and official language of Andorra, and a co-official Catalonia (Cataluña Catalunya Aranese: Catalonha) is an Autonomous Community in the northeast part of Spain. Catalan ˈkætəˌlæn ( català kətəˈla or) is a Romance language, the national and official language of Andorra, and a co-official

History

In Roman times, it was along the Via Domitia, the first Roman road built in Gaul. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC The Via Domitia was the first Roman road built in Gaul, to link Italy and Hispania through Gallia Narbonensis, across what is The Roman Roads were essential for the growth of the Roman Empire, by enabling the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate news Gaul (Gallia was the Roman name for the region of Western Europe comprising present day northern Italy, France, Belgium, western

During the Albigensian Crusade, Raymond VI of Toulouse besieged Beaucaire in May 1216. The Albigensian Crusade or Cathar Crusade (1209&ndash1229 was a 20-year military campaign initiated by the Roman Catholic Church to eliminate the Cathar Raymond VI of Toulouse ( October 27, 1156 &ndash August 2, 1222) was count of Toulouse and marquis of Provence from 1194 The efforts of Simon de Montfort to relieve the town were repulsed. Simon IV de Montfort Seigneur de Montfort-l'Amaury 5th Earl of Leicester (1160 &ndash June 25, 1218) also known as Simon de Montfort the elder, was The city fell after a three month siege.

At the end of the Hundred Years War in 1453, Charles VII of France declared that Beaucaire would become the site of the Foire de la Madeleine, a commercial fair that would enable the trade of goods from all of the Mediterranean Basin countries to all of France. The Hundred Years' War (Guerre de Cent Ans was a prolonged conflict lasting from 1337 to 1453 between two royal houses for the French throne vacant with the extinction of the senior Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461 called the Victorious (le Victorieux or the Well-Served (le Bien-Servi was King of France from 1422 The Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around and surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea. By the mid 17th century, the Fair was the largest commercial fair in the Mediterranean region, exceeding in 6 days the total volume of trade done in Marseilles in 1 year. It remained the dominant Mediterranean trade fair until the arrival of the railroad in the mid 19th century. One result of these years of commercial dominance was the construction of a remarkable number of architecturally significant mansions and palaces by rich merchants of many nationalities.

Camargue bulls are annually run through the streets, Iberian-style during the modern version of the Foire de la Madeleine, which is now a 6 day festival starting on July 21. The Camargue ( Occitan: Camarga in classical norm or Camargo in Mistralian norm is located south of Arles, France, between the The Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe, and includes modern day Spain, Portugal, Andorra Events include bull events, parties, amusement rides and discos.

Le Drac

From 20–22 June each year, Beaucaire celebrates the myth of the Drac. The word mythology (from the Greek grc μυθολογία mythología, meaning "a story-telling a legendary lore"

The townsfolk bring the monster to life the form of a long procession, which snakes through the town led by a swarm of children carrying Chinese-type lanterns. A monster is any of a large number of Legendary creatures which usually appear in Mythology, Legend, or Horror fiction.

According to folklore, the Drac monster is invisible to humans and is capable of changing shape at will. He is usually, however, depicted as a large, fearsome, winged sea-serpent. The story goes that in 1250 he abducted a lavender seller and took her beneath the waters to raise his son. The Lavenders Lavandula are a Genus of about 25–30 species of Flowering plants in the mint family Lamiaceae, native to the Mediterranean When she was released at the end of seven years, the young woman was endowed with a strange power: the ability to recognise the Drac with one of her eyes. Eyes are organs that detect Light, and send signals along the Optic nerve to the visual areas of the brain One day, she recognised him as he was going about the market in Beaucaire. Sao Paulo Stock Exchangejpg|thumb| Virtual market arena where buyer and seller are not present and trade via intemediates and electronical information Upon being identified, the Drac ripped the woman's eye out.

The Drac was then supposed to have gone on to kill over three thousand knights and villagers, being perhaps one of the craftiest of all French dragons. Knight is the English term for a social position originating in the Middle Ages. Most of the kills were performed in Beaucaire. Sometimes, however, the dragon would search for other victims elsewhere.

Whole armies were allegedly sent against the Drac, but all failed. The beast is thus assumed either to have died of old age, or to be still living at the bottom of the Rhône.

There are variations on the story. Some say lavender seller got her dragon-sight by accidentally getting 'Dragon cream' in her eye. Others say the Drac gave her a box of human fat to rub into the hatchling's scales so that it would be visible to humans (otherwise she would not be able to care for it). She was supposed to clean the fat off her hands every evening with special water; but, one evening, she forgot to do so, rubbed her eyes with her dirty hands, and acquired her dragon-sight. Some say it was both eyes, or just the one. Still other versions confuse this beast with other monsters of regional folklore, and claim the Drac was slain by some saint or heroine.

The date above conflicts a little with the account we have by an eminent inhabitant of Arles, Gervais de Tibury, who was passing through Beaucaire in 1214. Arles (aʁl̥ Provençal Occitan: Arles in both classical and Mistralian norms is a City in the south of France, He said he was astonished by what the villagers told him. They claimed that the deaths of a fair number of people in the waters of the Rhône were due to a dragon who lived in the river, and who had previously emerged, a many years before. The legend was perpetuated by Frédéric Mistral in his Poèmes du Rhône, where he tells of a hybrid monster, dwelling in the river and coming out from time to time to feed on human flesh: lavender-sellers, ferrymen or others who strayed to close to the water's edge. Frédéric Mistral ( September 8, 1830 — March 25, 1914) was a French Poet who led the 19th century revival of The invisible Drac would sometimes use a passage from the waters of the Rhône to a well in the marketplace in order to come out and walk among the townsfolk.

The name Drac is the Occitan and Catalan word for 'dragon', from the Latin DRACO, DRACONIS. Occitan ( IPA BrE: /ˈɒksɪtn/ AmE: /ˈɑksəˌtɑn/ known also as Lenga d'òc or Langue d'oc (native name occitan Catalan ˈkætəˌlæn ( català kətəˈla or) is a Romance language, the national and official language of Andorra, and a co-official The French for 'dragon' is simply dragon. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people

Miscellaneous

Beaucaire was the birthplace of François de Rovérié de Cabrières (1830-1921), prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, Bishop of Montpellier. François-Marie-Anatole de Rovérié de Cabrières ( August 30, 1830 &mdash December 21, 1921) was a French Cardinal of the A prelate is a high-ranking member of the Clergy who either is an Ordinary or ranks in precedence with ordinaries

See also

External links

The Canal du Rhône à Sète (lit canal from the Rhône to Sète is a Canal in southern France, which connects the Étang de Thau in Sète
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