Poussan

Poussan is a common French, located in the department of the Herault and the area Languedoc-Roussillon. Its inhabitants is called Poussanais.

Geography

The village of Poussan occupies the most maritime part of the Basin of Montbazin. The communal territory which extends on approximately 3000 hectares divides in two great units. In the west, half of the territory is occupied by the garrigues which form the mountains of Moure and with the east by the agricultural plain, primarily dedicated with the vineyard. With the south, the communal territory confronts the Basin of Thau. At all times, this plain allowed circulations, with in particular the installation of Via Domitia at the time of the Roman occupation.

History

Poussan is a very old village. One finds indeed on the communal territory of the traces of human occupation as of the period of the Neolithic era. It would even seem that there existed a oppidum with Poussan, on the hill of Puech Gayes to the borders of Poussan, on the road of Montbazin.

Thereafter, under the Gallo-Roman period, the occupation continues and is organized in units of exploitations. To date, different the surveys show that there was a very important activity during this period since many villa are attested. Thus one found on the commune of Poussan of many tombs whose funerary furniture is far from being negligible. Many objects, with the image of very beautiful bronze Actéon, or to the patères and ballot boxes cinéraires, preserved in the collections of the Languedocien Museum testify to the importance of the Graeco-Roman civilization on our territory.

It is not that as from the year 960 qu' appears for the first time the mention of Poussan in the documents of files, at the time of a donation by the Berthe countess of the Villa of Poussan, the agricultural domain and the Saint-Pierre church to the abbey of Montmajour.

In XIe century, the Benedictines of the Chair God in Auvergne receive in donation of the Bishop of Maguelone the church Saint-Vincent de Jonquières (church now ruined located near highway toll). This donation will be confirmed in 111§. They will receive in more the Saint-Sulpice church and the Saint-Pierre church. One owes with these monks Benedictines construction on the place of the church of what one formerly called the Small castle, makes of it their house prieurale, which became as from 1765 the presbytery. This beautiful building is described by the DRAC like more the good example of architecture domesticates Languedocien of XIVe century.

The history seigneuriale of Poussan is also very interesting since followed one another the head of the seigniories of powerful Languedocien families which such as them Castres, Montlaur, famous Lévis de Mirepoix, or Barrière and Tournezy. Those bequeathed residences of exception which testify to the patrimonial and architectural richness of Poussan. With Xe century until the first third of XIVe century, there existed only one seigniory whose seat was with the castle of Montlaur, at the height of Montlaur as one can find in the old documents. After XIVe century and the division of the seigniory between the two sons-in-law of lord of the Rock, the life of the city will know an extraordinary expansion until managing to be one of the seven villettes of Languedoc who had the right to in turn send a representative to the States of Languedoc. During XVIe - XVIIe and XVIIIe centuries, the village community knew a big change since by the trade and the catch in tenant farming of the very profitable grounds seigneuriales, from many families, to the image of Nicolau (which will become Nicolau of Montribloud), Olivier (Olivier de Sénozan and of Rosny), Fornier, Sauvaire, Reynaud, Brun, Gervais will constitute important estate real and financial and will at least allow them for the two first to belong to the Lyons gotha then Parisian until reaching the load of first president at the Parliament of Paris. Gervais will become in the middle of the XIXe century the founders of Saline of the South. In parallel of this enrichment, the village was rebuilt inside the ramparts and of beautiful houses were built under the Old Mode, of which remain today still of beautiful vestiges.

Like all the villages of the Languedocien plain, Poussan knew a phase of prosperity at the XIXe century. Beautiful houses vigneronnes which associate in the same construction industry, the structures of wine making at the ground floor and the apartment middle-class on the first level are built along the suburban axes. Along its avenues of Bédarieux or Sète, surprising buildings are aligned which testify to the richness to this commune until the Second world war.

Today, Poussan is redécouvrir its prestigious past, its middle-class houses abused by time and the incurie of our predecessors. But it is not too late, with its chiefs of work who are the castles of Montlaur, Malbois, Garenne and the old house prieurale, its ramparts out of apparatus in embossing of XIVe century which run on nearly two hundred meters and the beauty of its natural framework consisted its ECRIN of garrigues, this commune is incontestably the floret of the villages located on the circumference of the Basin of Thau.

Tradition

Every year, in Poussan, the day of fatty Tuesday is celebrated the Swing of the Shirt, where the men and the women must leave and dance with fallen the night. The men get dressed out of nightdress with woman, and the women get dressed out of nightdress with man. Idem for the night-caps. The tradition wanted that one has a lit candle surrounded by white or red oil-paper according to the political color. The goal was to burn the false tail fixed on the shirt of the person of front. All hopped to avoid being made roast. To the sound of the oboe and while singing, we saunter to the tail leu leu in the streets of the old village.

The history told by the song speaks about a lord who wanted to punish poussanais them, 200 years ago. " Tell me Jacou Dis me Marguerite" … Diga me Jacou, Diga me Marguarita per die that avès the my camisa poulida…

Administration

Demography

Places and monuments

Church of Poussan.

the Saint-Pierre church This building was rebuilt in the middle of the XIXe century thanks to the will of the Gept abbot who knew, during 57 years, of 1821 to 1878, to make of Poussan a true religious center. This building contains many treasures which, as with the image of the table of Pentecost, painted by Jacques Giral in 1722, or surprising it table of Saint-Roch pressed on a helmet in the forest of Pleasure, also to the XVIIIe century, testify to the importance of the Catholic religion in the local life.

the castle of Montlaur The castle of Montlaur located on the place of the church is a particularly interesting building with the very old history. It was to constitute the major defensive element of the medieval village. The oldest mentions concerning a defensive tower go up in year 990. Thus this castle which is registered under the Historic buildings and should be classified soon, has more than 1.000 years of existence. Series of painting, one in the stair-well, representative of the putti overlapping eagles in a decoration of architecture, the other in the room of pageantry at the ground floor representing the passage of Charles IX in Poussan in Lord de Chaume, lord of Poussan, constitute one of the major elements of the patrimonial richness of Poussan. But its walls did not finish delivering to us all the beauties of this worthy building. It presents in more the characteristic to have two turrets of angle, including one, street Sadi Carnot which is a chief of work of the architecture of the Rebirth with its very worked base.

the castle of Malbois or castle of Lévis de Mirepoix This castle which extends on a small island from buildings is partially registered under the Historic buildings for its frontage which is one of rare only, to present a decoration also excavated and especially vestiges of a loggia in frontage and for its Vinas room, with its exceptional coffered ceilings painted in polychromy and which date from the years 1450. An exceptional chimney decorates also this room. This castle would only make it possible him to make a course of history of art, only by studying its architecture. It was built at the time of the partition of the seigniory and became the seat of the seigniory of Bottom.

the castle of Garenne At the end of the XVIIe century, the castle of Garenne east built by Jacques de Tournezy, one of the powerful magistrates of the Court of Auditors of Montpellier, holder of the high seigniory of Poussan. The project of the castle is to be used as architectural face with a vast garden which it considered on the front and which extended to the roundabout and further still. It is classified under the Historic buildings.

the presbytery This beautiful building describes in the guide of the inheritance like " more the good example of architecture domesticates Languedocien of XIVe siècle" became the presbytery of the parish in 1765 after the municipality acquired of it near the Benedictines of the Chair God in Auvergne, holders of the churches of Poussan authorized the sale of it to him. This building which presents a beautiful frontage out of apparatus to embossing and coupled windows presents moreover beautiful ribbed vaults. Recent studies showed that it was partially rebuilt at the XIXe century - the frontage was moved back of a few meters - but that the materials of origin were re-used.

It would be however too long to make an inventory of the whole of the patrimonial richnesses that this commune present. Other buildings, in particular to XVIIIe testify to its last richness.

Personalities related to the commune

Discovered

A fresco dating from the Rebirth was discovered the March 18th 2006 in the vault of the castle of Montlaur.

It is during the clearing of this vault that Fabrice Bertrand, member of the archaeological company of Montpellier, and Mrs. Arlette Petit, president of Association Saint-Vincent de Poussan, discovered this mural of XVIe century, representing two characters with of which a rider, and hitherto covered with coating. The classification of this work of national interest to the historic buildings is in hand.

Painting would have been carried out in homage Charles IX of passage to Poussan. The king of France would have stopped in this village of the Herault in 1564 to make there repair a wheel of sound fits with body.

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