Aigues-Mortes

Aigues-Mortes(French pronunciation:[ɛɡmɔʁt];Occitan:Aigas Mòrtas) is acommunein theGarddepartmentin theOccitaniaregion of southernFrance.  The medievalcity wallssurrounding the city are well preserved. Situated on the junction of theCanal du Rhône à Sèteand the Chenal Maritime toLe Grau-du-Roi, the town is a transit center forcanal craftandDutch barges.
The name "Aigues-Mortes" was attested  in 1248 in the Latinized formAquae Mortuae, which means "dead water", or "stagnant water". The name comes from the marshes and ponds that surround the village (which has never hadpotable water). The inhabitants of the commune are known asAigues-MortaisorAigues-Mortaisesin French.
TheOccitanAigas Mortasis equivalent to toponymic types in the MorteauOil dialectcf.Morteau (Doubs):mortua Aqua(1105, VTF521)andMorteaue (Haute-Marne):mortua Aqua(1163, VTF521).Grau du Royin French means "pond of the King". In Occitan,graumeans "pond with extension".
The Roman generalGaius Mariusis said to have founded Aigues-Mortes around 102 BC, but there is no documentary evidence to support this.
A Roman by the name ofPecciuscultivated the first salt marsh and gave his name to the Marsh of Peccais.Salt mining started from theNeolithicperiod and was continued in theHellenisticperiod, but the ancient uses of saline have not resulted in any major archaeological discovery. It is likely that any remains were destroyed by modern saline facilities.
In 791,Charlemagneerected theMatafère Tower[fr]amid the swamps for the safety of fishermen and salt workers. Some argue that the signaling and transmission of news was not foreign to the building of this tower which was designed to give warning in case of arrival of a fleet, as for theMagne Tower[fr]atNîmes.
The purpose of this tower was part of the war plan and spiritual plan which Charlemagne granted at theBenedictineabbey, dedicated toOpus Dei(work of God) and whose incessant chanting, day and night, was to designate the convent asPsalmodyorPsalmodi. This monastery still existed in 812, as confirmed by an act of endowment made by the Badila from Nîmes at the abbey.
At that time, the people lived in reed huts and made their living from fishing, hunting, and salt production from several small salt marshes along the sea shore. The region was then under the rule of the monks from theAbbey of Psalmody.
In 1240,Louis IX, who wanted to get rid of the dependency on theItalian maritime republicsfor transporting troops to theCrusades, focused on the strategic position of his kingdom. At that time,Marseillebelonged to his brotherCharles of Anjou, King of Naples,Agdeto theCount of Toulouse, andMontpellierto the King of Aragon. Louis IX wanted direct access to the Mediterranean Sea. He obtained the town and the surrounding lands by exchange of properties with the monks of the abbey.Residents were exempt from the salt tax which was previously levied so that they could now take the salt unconstrained.
He built a road between the marshes and built theCarbonnière Tower[fr]to serve as a watchtower and protect access to the city. Louis IX then built theConstance Tower[fr]on the site of the old Matafère Tower, to house the garrison. In 1272, his son and successor,Philip III the Bold, ordered the continuation of the construction of walls to encircle the small town completely. The work would not be completed for another 30 years.
This was the city from which Louis IX twice departed for theSeventh Crusadein 1248 and for theEighth Crusadein 1270, where he died ofdysenteryatTunis.
The year 1270 has been established, mistakenly for many historians, as the last step of a process initiated at the end of the 11th century. The judgment is hasty because the transfer of crusaders or mercenaries from the harbour of Aigues-Mortes continued after this year. The order given in 1275 to Sir Guillaume de Roussillon byPhilip III the BoldandPope Gregory Xafter theCouncil of Lyonsin 1274 to reinforceSaint-Jean d'Acrein the East shows that maritime activity continued for a ninth crusade which never took place.
There is a popular belief that the sea reached Aigues-Mortes in 1270. In fact, as confirmed by studies of the engineer Charles Leon Dombre, the whole of Aigues-Mortes, including the port itself, was in the Marette pond, theCanal-VielandGrau Louis, the Canal Viel being the access channel to the sea. The Grau-Louis was approximately at the modern location ofLa Grande-Motte.
At the beginning of the 14th century,Philip the Fairused the fortified site to incarcerate theTemplars. Between 8 and 11 November 1307, forty-five of them were put to the question, found guilty, and held prisoner in theTower of Constance.
Aigues-Mortes still retained its privileges granted by the kings.The Protestant Jean d'Harambure "the One-Eyed", light horse commander ofKing Henry IVand former governor ofVendômewas appointed governor ofAigues-Mortesand the Carbonnière Tower on 4 September 1607. To do this, he took an oath before the Constable of FranceHenri de Montmorency, Governor of Languedoc, who was a Catholic and supported the rivalAdrien de Chanmont, the Lord of Berichère. The conflict continued until 1612, and Harambure, supported by the pastors of Lower Languedoc and the inhabitants, finished it by a personal appeal to the Queen.He eventually resigned on 27 February 1615 in favour of his son Jean d'Harambure, but KingLouis XIIIrestored him for six years. On 27 July 1616 he resigned again in favour ofGaspard III de Coligny, but not without obtaining a token of appreciation for the judges and consuls of the city.
At the beginning of the 15th century, important works were being undertaken to facilitate access toAigues-Mortesfrom the sea. The oldGrau-Louis, dug for the Crusades, was replaced by theGrau-de-la-Croisetteand a port was dug at the base of the Tower of Constance. It lost its importance from 1481 whenProvenceandMarseillewere attached to the kingdom of France. Only the exploitation of the Peccais salt marshes encouragedFrançois I, in 1532, to connect the salt industry ofAigues-Mortesto the sea. This channel, calledGrau-Henry, silted up in turn. The opening, in 1752, of theGrau-du-Roisolved the problem for a while. A final solution was found in 1806 by connecting the Aigues-Mortes river port through theCanal du Rhône à Sète.
From 1575 to 1622, Aigues-Mortes was one of the eight safe havens granted to theProtestants. The revocation of theEdict of Nantesin 1685 caused severe repression of Protestantism, which was marked inLanguedocand theCévennesin the early 18th century by theCamisardWar. Like other towers in the town, from 1686 onwards, the Constance Tower was used as a prison for theHuguenotswho refused to convert toRoman Catholicism. In 1703, Abraham Mazel, leader of theCamisards, managed to escape with sixteen companions.
During the French Revolution, the city was calledPort-Pelletier.At that time the port had almost disappeared due to silting, induced by the intensification of labour in the watershed at the same time as the clearing of woods and forests following theabolition of privileges. The decline of forest cover led to soil erosion and consequently a greater quantity of alluvial deposits in the ports of the region. Thus, in 1804 the prefect "Mr. de Barante père" wrote in a reportthat: "The coasts of this department are more prone to silting ... The ports of Maguelonne and Aigues Mortes and the old port ofCetteno longer exist except in history" he alerted: "An inordinate desire to collect and multiply these forest clearings since 1790 ... Greed has devoured in a few years the resource of the future, the mountains, opened to the plough, show that soon naked and barren rock, each groove becoming a ravine; the topsoil, driven by storms, has been brought into the rivers, and thence into the lower parts, where it serves every day to find the lowest parts and the darkest swamps."
TheMassacre of the Italians at Aigues-Morteswas a series of events on 16 and 17 August 1893  which resulted in the deaths of immigrant Italian workers of theCompagnie des Salins du Midi, at the hands of French villagers and labourers. Estimates range from the official number of eight deaths up to 150, according to the Italian press of the time. The case was also one of the greatest legal scandals of the time, since no convictions were ever made.
Aigues-Mortes is located in thePetite Camarguesome 90 km (56 miles) northwest of Marseille.  By road, Aigues-Mortes is about 33 km (21 miles) southwest ofNîmes, and 20 km (12 miles) east ofMontpellierin a direct line. Access to the commune is by route D979 coming south fromSaint-Laurent-d'Aigouzeto Aigues-Mortes town. Route D979 continues southwest through the commune toLe Grau-du-Roi. Route D62 also starts from Aigues-Mortes heading southwest parallel to D979 before turning eastwards and forming part of the southern border of the commune. Route D62A continues to Plan d'Eau du Vidourie.
The commune is composed of a portion of the wet plains and lakes of the Petite Camargue. It is separated from theGulf of Lions(and, thus, the Mediterranean) by the town of Le Grau-du-Roi, however Aigues-Mortes is connected to the sea through theCanal du Rhône à Sète. There is only one otherhamletin the commune called Mas de Jarras Listel on the western border.
The Canal du Rhône à Sète enters the commune from the northwest and the northeast in two branches from the main canal to the north and the branches intersect in the town of Aigues-Mortes before exiting as a single canal alongside route D979 and feeding into the Mediterranean Sea at Le Grau-du-Roi.
A rail branch line fromNîmespasses through Aigues-Mortes from north-east to south-west, with a station in the town of Aigues-Mortes, to its terminus on the coast at Le-Grau-du-Roi.  This line also transports sea salt.
The communes ofSaint-Laurent-d'AigouzeandLe Grau-du-Roiare adjacent to the town of Aigues-Mortes. Its inhabitants are calledAigues-MortaisorAigues-Mortise; inOccitanthey areaigamortencs.
Aigues-Mortes is one of 79 member communes of theSchéma de cohérence territoriale (SCoT)of South Gard and is also one of 34 communes in thePays Vidourle-Camargue. Aigues-Mortes is one of the four communes of theLoi littoral[fr]ofSCoTin the South of Gard.
Aigues-Mortes has ahot-summer Mediterranean climate(Köppen climate classificationCsa). The average annual temperature in Aigues-Mortes is 16.0 °C (60.8 °F). The average annual rainfall is 552.6 mm (21.76 in) with October as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 24.8 °C (76.6 °F), and lowest in January, at around 7.9 °C (46.2 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded in Aigues-Mortes was 40.9 °C (105.6 °F) on 28 June 2019; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −13.0 °C (8.6 °F) on 4 February 1963.
The medieval heritage from the 13th and 14th centuries of the commune and its proximity to the sea attract many tourists and residents of France.
The city of Aigues-Mortes is a crossroads of canals:
Aigues-Mortes stationhas rail connections to Nîmes and Le Grau-du-Roi. The railway line from Nîmes to Le Grau-du-Roi is also used for the transport of salt produced by the saltworks of the Salins Group (see link below).
The development of seaside tourism since the 1960s was marked by the construction of new resorts (La Grande-Motte) and the extension of existing facilities fromLe Grau du RoitoPort-Camargue. To facilitate access to tourists, a coastal road network has been augmented and connected to the A9 motorway.Aigues-Mortesbenefits in these ways:
The bus 106 also connectsMontpellierandSaintes-Maries-de-la-Mer.
The municipal council consists of 29 members including the mayor, 8 deputies, and 20 municipal councilors.
Since the last municipal elections, its composition is as follows:
List of Successive Mayors of Aigues-Mortes
The town is the capital of the canton of the same name whose general councillor is Leopold Rosso, deputy mayor ofLe Grau-du-Roiand president of the Community of Communes Terre de Camargue (UMP). The canton is part of thearrondissement of Nîmesand thesecond electoral district of Gardwhere the member isGilbert Collard(FN).
The population of the town is similar to the departmental average. The female population is over-represented compared to men: the rate (52.2%) is substantially the same as the departmental rate (51.8%).
Percentage Distribution of Age Groups in Aigues-Mortes and Gard Department in 2017
Source:INSEE
Fougassewas one of the first pastries which could rise. It can be sweet (sometimes called "tarte au sucre" or sugar tart) or salty (with or without gratillons).
Traditionally, making sweet fougasse inAigues-Morteswas reserved for the Christmas period, as part of theThirteen desserts. Based on abriochedough, sugar, butter, and orange blossom, it was made by the baker with ingredients provided by the client. Now Aigues-Mortes fougasse sells all year.
Lou Drapéis an imaginary horse mentioned in local folklore, which was supposed to walk at night around the ramparts of the city and take 50 to 100 children on his back, and disappear to "nowhere".
Aigues-Mortes has a very large number of sites registered as historical monumentsand historical objects.
TheTower of Constancewas built in 1242 bySaint-Louison the former site of the Matafère Tower which was built by Charlemagne around 790AD to house the king's garrison. The construction was completed in 1254.
It is 22 metres in diameter with a height of either 33 or 40 metres depending on the source. The thickness of the walls at the base is 6 metres.
On the ground floor, there is a guardroom protected by a portcullis. In the middle of the room, there is a circular opening leading to the cellar which served as a pantry, storage of ammunition as well as for dungeons. These areas were called the "culs de basse fosse", an old way of saying underground dungeons in French.
On the first floor, there is the knight's hall. Structurally it is similar to the guardroom. It was in this room that theProtestantswere imprisoned during the 18th century, most notablyMarie Durand, who engraved the word "résister" (English: resist) into the edge of the well which can be seen to this day. She was imprisoned at the age of 19, and was freed 38 years later, along with political prisoners such as Abraham Mazel, leader of theCamisards.
Between these two rooms, a narrow, covered way was built within the walls to keep watch on the room below.
After the knight's hall, there is an entrance to the terrace which offers a wide panoramic view of the region, making it an ideal position for surveillance.  Sometimes, the prisoners were allowed to go on the terrace to get some fresh air.
The ramparts stretch for a distance of 1650 metres.
Spectacular in their height and their state of preservation even though they were not restored in the 19th century, as wasCarcassonnefor example, they remain in a well preserved state. Along with theTower of Constance, they are a testimony to Western European military architecture in the marshlands during the 13th and 14th centuries.
Located in the commune ofSaint-Laurent-d'Aigouze, the Carbonnière Tower was first referred to in an old text from 1346 specifying the function of the structure. It said, "this fortress is the key to the kingdom in this region." Surrounded by salt marshes, the fortress was the only passageway intoAigues-Mortes. It was guarded by a garrison made up of achâtelainand several guards. From the terrace, which could support up to four cannons, there is a panoramic view ofPetite Camargue.
TheChurch of Notre-Dame-des-Sablonsis aGothic-style church and was probably built before the ramparts in the mid-13th century during the time ofSaint-Louis. In 1537 it served as aCollegiate churchbut was later vandalized byProtestantsin 1575. After the reconstruction of the bell tower in 1634 it later served as aTemple of Reasonduring theFrench Revolution, a barracks,grain merchant, and a salt warehouse. It was re-established as a place of worship in 1804 and the building was restored in theneo classical-baroquestyle. Between 1964 and 1967 all of the 19th century decor was removed, notably the coffered ceilings, resulting in the much more basic and medieval style church we see today. Since 1991, thestained-glass windowsbyClaude Viallat, a contemporary artist belonging to theSupports/Surfacesart movement, add extraordinary light and colour to the building.  With the exception of a few statues, the rest of the 18th and 19th century furniture disappeared during this period. The façade is crowned by a simple bell-gable housing 3 bells. The largest of the three is 1.07 metres in diameter. It was dated to 1740, cast by master smelter Jean Poutingon, and has been designated a historical monument of France. The church also houses a statue ofSaint-Louis.
TheChapel of the Gray Penitentsis located to the east of thePlace de la Viguerie. It is the property of the Brotherhood of Grey Penitents established in 1400. The facade is in the style ofLouis XIV. The entrance door is from the 17th century and is decorated with a wooden statue. The altarpiece was carved in 1687 bySabatier.
Inside, an altarpiece represents thepassion of Christ. It was built of gray stucco plaster in 1687 by the sculptorSabatierfromMontpellier. This altar, on which are the arms of the brotherhood, occupies the back of thechoir.
TheChapel of the White Penitentsis located at the corner of theRue de la RépubliqueandRue Louis Blanc. It belongs to the Brotherhood of the White Penitents which was created in 1622.
Above thechoir, on the roof, there is a copy of theRetableofJerusalemwhereChristcelebrated thePassoverand Holy Thursday with hisapostles. Around the high altar, a painting on canvas traces the descent of the Holy Spirit on the day ofPentecost. It is attributed toXavier Sigalona painter born inUzèsin 1778 . On each side of the choir stand two statues: on the left Saint Felix for the redemption of captives, on the rightJames, son of Alphaeus, firstBishop of Jerusalem.
This is the touristic heart of the city. In the centre, opposite the main entrance of thePorte de la Gardette, stands the statue ofSaint-Louis, the work ofJames Pradierin 1849.
ThePlan des Theatresare arenas for theCamargue bullfights. They were listed in 1993 on the inventory of the list of Historic Monuments (MH) for their ethnological and cultural interest. They can accommodate more than 600 people.