Calvisson | |
|---|---|
 The 19th-century neo-classical fronted temple | |
.svg) Coat of arms | |
 Location of Calvisson | |
  Calvisson  Calvisson | |
| Coordinates:43°47′09″N4°11′34″E / 43.7858°N 4.1927°E /43.7858; 4.1927 | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Occitania |
| Department | Gard |
| Arrondissement | Nîmes |
| Canton | Calvisson |
| Intercommunality | Pays de Sommières |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–2026) | André Sauzède[1] |
Area 1 | 28.97 km2 (11.19 sq mi) |
| Population (2022)[2] | 6,295 |
| • Density | 217.3/km2 (562.8/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 30062 /30420 |
| Elevation | 23–215 m (75–705 ft) (avg. 50 m or 160 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Calvisson (French pronunciation:[kalvisɔ̃];Provençal:Cauviçon) is acommune in theGarddepartment in theOccitanieregion in southernFrance.
It lies betweenNîmes,Montpellier, theCevennes and theCamargue and has a strongProtestant history.
Calvisson is a commune inGard 17 km (11 mi) west ofNîmes. It is in the northern foothills of the Vaunage, a fertile valley surrounded by a rim of limestone hills rising to 200 m. The most prominent hill is the Rock of Gachone, which was the site of an importantoppidum, or a fortified town, under the Romans. The natural vegetation is classicgarrigue; today the valley is used for vineyards and horticulture. A tiny stream, the Escattes, flows through the village[1]Archived 19 August 2008 at theWayback Machine. Calvisson also includes the hamlets of Sinsans and Bizac.
The site is known to have been settled since theChalcolithic transition (4300–3200 BC).
In 1060, at the time of the domination ofCounts de Toulouse, the name Calvisson appears for the first time. At the time, it was a fortified town surmounted by two towers which covered 2000 m2. This fortified town controlled all of theVaunage. In 1304 KingPhilip IV of France gave toGuillaume de Nogaretas a fiefdom.
From the 16th century, with the beginnings ofReformation, Calvisson was divided by thewars of religion. The village becomes a centre ofprotestantism. In 1681, the CatholicKing Louis XIV, used his troops to re-convert Protestants. On 30 June 1685, being Protestant became illegal in Nîmes. The religion moved underground, the paid pastor was replaced by the layprophet. The wars slowly destroyed the castle which, by the middle of the 17th century is used as stone quarry.
TheCamisards operated throughout the mainly protestant Cévennes region which in the early years of the eighteenth century also included the Vaunage and the parts of theCamargue aroundAigues Mortes. In 1701, the village was a protestant stronghold which was occupied and then, in 1704, used as a base for the royalist troops in the battle ofNages against the protestant forces ofJean Cavalier theprophet and military leader.
In 1787, the Rock of Gachone which stands above the village is used as triangulation point byJean-Dominique Cassini for mapping the area.
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 1,802 | — |
| 1975 | 1,793 | −0.07% |
| 1982 | 2,088 | +2.20% |
| 1990 | 2,725 | +3.38% |
| 1999 | 3,597 | +3.13% |
| 2007 | 4,300 | +2.26% |
| 2012 | 5,269 | +4.15% |
| 2017 | 5,745 | +1.74% |
| Source: INSEE[3] | ||
Bull running happens in Calvisson, according to the Carmargues tradition, where no bull gets hurt. The annual event takes place around 20 July over a period of five days. There are four events, theAbrivado where over ten bulls are run together through the street guided by a group of twelve 'guardians' mounted on white Camargues horses, anEncierro where one bull is released outside the foyer and finds his own way back to the pen, the Bandido where one bull is run accompanied through the streets, and theBandido de nuit which is the same thing but after dark. Boys and men run with the bulls and try and separate them from the horses, stop them, and physically turn them away from the horses.[4]
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