The Cevennes

Geography

Assembly line directed of south-west in the North-East, forming the south-eastern edge of the Massif Central, the Cevennes, with the widest direction, are made up many small solid masses, by beginning with the Black Montagne, the mounts of Espinouse and Caroux, the Small Cevennes, then they disappear under the Larzac, one of the Grands Causses, return with the peak of the Saint Guiral, the solid mass of the Aigoual, the Lozere, then in Ardèche that of Tanargue, to finish with the solid mass of the Pilat in the North-East. In a strict sense, and it is the definition retained by the famous explorer and speleologist Martel, the Cevennes are consisted of the schistous solid mass primarily ranging between the Mont Lozere in north and the Mont Aigoual in the south.

In the broad sense, they are thus with horse on 9 departments: the Tarn, the Aude, the Herault, the Aveyron, the Gard, the Lozere, the Ardeche, the the Rhone and the the Loire. In a strict sense on the other hand, they relate to only the departments of Lozere and Gard. The National park of the Cevennes is located besides in Lozere in its major part. The culminating point is the Mont Lozere with the Pic of Finiels (1699 m). Other remarkable points are the Mont Aigoual (1567 m) in the Gard, the massive of Caroux in the Herault. It is about a basic chain and medium mountains, formed of many steepsided valleys. The area remains still particularly wedged today. It constitutes a territorial margin as well at the socio-economic level as at the ecologist-climatic level. They are characterized at the biogeographic level by a very strong gradient altitudinal.

Source: Souchay S. " landscape with its denomination, a region cévenole" control geography Toulouse Mirail 2005

Geology

The Cevennes solid masses consist of varied rocks:

rocks of the primary era of the old base:

of the Schist S, on which the chestnuts push;
the Granite S, more resistant to the erosion, constitute the highest tops: Mount Aigoual and Mount Lozere;

the rocks of the secondary era which recover the buttresses of the schistous and granitic solid masses:

the rocks Calcareous S, Dolomite S and sandstone…

The whole is limited to south-east by famous the Faille of the Cevennes, which is not active any more today.

Climate

Climate of the Cevennes Mediterranean east and gradually mountain dweller according to altitude. It is characterized by strong precipitations with the equinoxes and an important estival dryness.

The Cevennes are the theater of the Cevennes episodes (or Cevennes effect): they are pouring rain accompanied by storms very localized and concentrated over a few hours, even a few days. They are mainly due to the meeting between the cold air coming from the Atlantique which went up on the tops of the Cevennes and the hot air going up of the the Mediterranean.

Because of their suddenness, their violence and local geography, these episodes often lead to floods.

Fauna and flora

The Cevennes are the framework of the National park of the Cevennes, created in 1969, in which nearly 15000 [[Hectare ha]] were classified in area closed with hunting. It is only the National park inhabited in France. More than 80% of its surface is located in Lozere.

History

The name comes from the Gallic Cebenna , Latinized in Cevenna by Jules César. These word probably concern old Celtic a cebn meaning back, ( cefn in Welsh, kein into Breton).

It is also mentioned a Cébenna goddess who rests on the mount of Caroux, with the top of Olargues in the Herault, which is lengthened on the back.

The Cevennes preserve the memory of Robert Louis Stevenson, precursor of modern tourism, which traversed the area with foot, accompanied by an ass, during the year 1878 and made of it a remarkable account in its work Voyage with an ass in the Cevennes .

The Cevennes were the theater of the Guerre of the camisards, opposing the partisans of the Reform (Protestants) to the troops (Catholiques) of the king (dragons) between 1702 and 1704 - 1705 (but in the facts, repression lasted until the French revolution).

As of, the dioceses of Mende, Nimes, from Went (Alès) and of Uzès were agitated by the religious wars. Although unceasingly persecuted (as of 1660 with the dragonnades), the Protestants were numerous there when the revocation of the Édit of Nantes (October 18th 1685) struck them of a general proscription. One then sent missionaries and soldiers to them, who converted some of them only. Indeed, the greatest number liked to better hide in the Cevennes maquis, expatrier or to suffer for his beliefs.

They were only reversed temples, pastors put at death, men sent to the galères, old men, women and children thrown in prison (as with the Tower of Constancy to Acute-Dead where the Protestant woman Marie Durand remained 38 years of her life there and had engraved there on the central well of the common cell the word " résistez" (" register")). Much took refuge in the Cevennes; but, there still, the enquiry continued them, and of the thousands perished there on roughing-hew it or the wheel.

Despaired, some Cevennes mountain dwellers and peasants (approximately 2000) armed themselves, the ones of forgery, the others of forks, others of swords or rifles; and, of the mountains of the Gard, the revolt was propagated in the country of Went. Thus the war of Camisards (1702) started.

Like all the men of party, Camisards were badly judged: the ones made of them brigands, others of the heroes, those of the saints and prophets, these of the sacrileges and irreligious people. They was the honest country poor which, tired to be held to ransom and upset by people of war, simply fought for the defense of their goods, their values, their freedoms and their lives. They wanted some especially with clergy, whose intolerance and fanaticism unceasingly requested against them new persecutions. The catholics reflect very with fire and blood in this country, not saving neither the age nor the sex. One quotes villages where several expectant mothers were cut the throat of and of which children, snatches of their center, were carried in procession with the point of a pile.

It is known that this war of extermination lasted three years. But repression lasted until 1744, even 1787, date of the Édit of tolerance little before the Revolution. The Camisard S went day and night, and by bands; they called brothers their chiefs. Jean Cavalier, which ordered the bands of the plain or from the country of Went, was a boy hardly apprentice-baker twenty years old. Burning and courageous, it passed for a prophet and had on his companions an absolute capacity. It had to fight the marshal of Montrevel, which it did successfully; but it went to Villars. It is said that the large king being made introduce the young hero, with the sight of his weak air and his small size, it raised the shoulders and the back turned to him.

The Cevennes seen by the writers

The Cevennes offer the rock, only the rock, the sharp schists… You feel the fight of the man, his obstinate work, extraordinary, against nature.

Finally at the top, with the collar (collar of Jalcreste), an admirable panorama on the southernmost Cevennes, from which the summits which extend to far, bluish and dew in vague foothills seem giant waves as many.

Economy

The Cevennes economy currently mainly rests on the Country holidays and an agriculture of small-scale farmings (breeding).

The landscape remains marked by its exploitation passed in terraces for the culture of the Châtaigne and the Mûrier. The Cevennes were indeed a high place of production of the Soie. Many magnaneries and spinning mill S remain in the landscape.

In certain valleys, the culture of old varieties such as the Onion soft of the Cevennes (AOC) and the apple rennet of the Vigan redynamisent economic fabric.

The practice of the ski remains marginal and limited, because of weak winter snowing up.

See too

External bonds

tourist Country Causses Aigoual the Cevennes
Cevennes tourist Country
tourist Country of Cevennes Piedmont
tourist Country the Cevennes Mount Welcome Lozere
at Sinopis Site photographs devoted to the Cevennes

History

Museum of the Desert

Tourism - Geography

Atlas of the National park of the Cevennes
Very to reserve your stay in the Cevennes
the Cevennes and its National park
Tourist office the Cevennes the Mediterranean
Southernmost Cevennes Tourist office

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