Bessan

Bessan is a commune in the Hérault department of the Occitanie region in France. Its inhabitants are known as 'Bessanais' in French.

Bessan
The Historic Bessan Village Door
Coat of arms
Location of Bessan
Bessan
Bessan
Coordinates: 43°21′43″N 3°25′30″E
CountryFrance
RegionOccitanie
DepartmentHérault
ArrondissementBéziers
CantonAgde
IntercommunalityHérault Méditerranée
Government
  Mayor (20142020) Stéphane Pépin-Bonnet
Area
1
27.65 km2 (10.68 sq mi)
Population
 (2017-01-01)[1]
5,069
  Density180/km2 (470/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
  Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
34031 /34550
Elevation0–84 m (0–276 ft)
(avg. 8 m or 26 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Geography

Map

Built among vineyards on the Hérault river, Bessan is a mainly agricultural village. In the past, its port was used to ship wines and other spirits.

Located a few kilometres from the Mediterranean Sea, it contains the Ricard distillery and Cactus Park botanical garden.

History

Around 600 BC, Greeks settled in Bessan on the oppidum of Monadière to trade.

In 218 BC the Carthaginian general Hannibal crossed the region with his army and war elephants to attack the Romans, passing between Bessan and Montblanc.

In 408-409 AD Béziers, Agde and the region were ransacked by an army of Germanic (Burgundians, Suevi, Vandals), Slavic (Alan) and other tribes.

In 737, Charles Martel entered the province at the head of the French, temporarily pushing back the Saracens, and destroyed Béziers, Agde and the surrounding countryside to prevent the Saracens from returning and fortifying the region.

1050-1100, the fortified village of Bessan starts to be built.

In 1209, the Crusader army, led by Simon de Montfort, seized the region under the pretext of hunting the Cathars, and ten years later the castles of Bessan and Touroulle became the property of his son, Amaury.

In 1278, the Bessanais had obtained the right to elect consuls (mayors) to deal with political affairs from their seigneur.

In 1348, the plague killed a large proportion of the population. It returned several times thereafter.

On the 30 October 1587, Antoine Scipio, the new Duke of Joyeuse and leader of the Catholics, took advantage of the governor of Languedocs' absence in the Tarn with his army. Scipio seized and looted Bessan.

In 1851, during the coup of Napoleon III, a cannon was pointed at the Grand'rue and some thirty republican Bessanais were deported.

In 1907, the Bessanais was actively involved in the Midi wine revolt.

In November 1942, German troops entered and occupied Bessan. They fled in August 1944, after the Allied landing in Provence.

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±%
17932,003    
18002,078+3.7%
18061,976−4.9%
18212,246+13.7%
18312,228−0.8%
18362,336+4.8%
18412,265−3.0%
18462,287+1.0%
18512,297+0.4%
18562,336+1.7%
18612,455+5.1%
18662,537+3.3%
18722,552+0.6%
18762,557+0.2%
18812,544−0.5%
18862,535−0.4%
18912,680+5.7%
18962,701+0.8%
YearPop.±%
19012,848+5.4%
19062,755−3.3%
19112,863+3.9%
19213,099+8.2%
19263,388+9.3%
19313,487+2.9%
19363,034−13.0%
19462,651−12.6%
19542,754+3.9%
19622,919+6.0%
19682,972+1.8%
19752,911−2.1%
19822,997+3.0%
19903,356+12.0%
19994,025+19.9%
20084,435+10.2%
20114,638+4.6%

See also

References

  1. "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.