Espinasse, Puy-de-Dôme

Espinasse is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France. Small farming village in the Pays of Combrailles, in the canton of Saint-Éloy-les-Mines, the village is nestled in a hollow, about nine kilometers west of the town of Saint-Gervais-d'Auvergne. The inhabitants of the commune are known as Espinassois or Espinassoises.[2]

Espinasse
Commune
The church in Espinasse
Location of Espinasse
Espinasse
Espinasse
Coordinates: 46°02′19″N 2°42′43″E
CountryFrance
RegionAuvergne-Rhône-Alpes
DepartmentPuy-de-Dôme
ArrondissementRiom
CantonSaint-Éloy-les-Mines
IntercommunalityCC Pays de Saint-Éloy
Government
 • Mayor (2014–2020) Marc Gidel
Area
1
23.95 km2 (9.25 sq mi)
Population
 (2017-01-01)[1]
294
 • Density12/km2 (32/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
63152 /63390
Elevation598–774 m (1,962–2,539 ft)
(avg. 680 m or 2,230 ft)
Websitewww.espinasse63.com
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

During the Middle Ages and the Early modern period, the region of Combrailles was of paramount importance at territorial level because it was located at the crossroads of several lordships (Bourbonnais, Auvergne and Limousin). Therefore, the town of Espinasse suffered this proximity and was divided into fiefs belonging among others to the House of Le Loup, the House of Montmorency and the House of La Fayette.

Geography

Espinasse is located some 30 km west of Combronde and 23 km north-west of Bromont-Lamothe. Access to the commune is by the D 13 from Charensat in the south-west which passes through the commune and the village before continuing north to Pionsat. The D 62 comes from Saint-Priest-des-Champs in the south-east. The D 18 comes from Saint-Julien-la-Geneste in the north-east. The D 528 comes from Bussières in the north-west. The commune is mixed forest and farmland.[3]

Neighbouring communes and villages[4]

Administration
Espinasse Town Hall

List of Successive Mayors since 1800[5]

FromToNamePartyPosition
18001808Gilbert Gory
18081813Annet Lecuyer
18131815Jean-Joseph Boutarel
18151816Paul Sanne
18161818Amable Nouhen
18191830Charles Marien Baron
18301840Claude Fribaud
18401849Charles Marien Baron
18491875Frédéric Gory
18751877Marien Martin
18771885Jean Chabry
18851889Marien Lecuyer
18891893François Carton
18931895Gilbert Martin
18951904Etienne Gory
19041912Annet Charvillat
19121944Eugène Charvillat
19441959Michel Carte
19591975Roger Laroche
19752005François Gardet
20052020Marc Gidel

Demography

In 2017 the commune had 294 inhabitants.

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1793 837—    
1800 823−0.24%
1806 735−1.87%
1821 1,021+2.22%
1831 1,025+0.04%
1836 1,018−0.14%
1841 1,124+2.00%
1846 1,200+1.32%
1851 1,182−0.30%
1856 1,152−0.51%
1861 1,156+0.07%
1866 1,082−1.31%
1872 1,082+0.00%
1876 1,117+0.80%
1881 1,139+0.39%
1886 1,191+0.90%
1891 1,220+0.48%
1896 1,105−1.96%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1901 1,157+0.92%
1906 1,024−2.41%
1911 974−1.00%
1921 952−0.23%
1926 903−1.05%
1931 771−3.11%
1936 739−0.84%
1946 633−1.54%
1954 593−0.81%
1962 543−1.10%
1968 507−1.14%
1975 411−2.95%
1982 355−2.07%
1990 274−3.19%
1999 285+0.44%
2007 320+1.46%
2012 297−1.48%
2017 294−0.20%
Source: EHESS[6] and INSEE[7]

Culture and heritage

Cultural events and festivities

The Hay Fest (La Fête des Foins in French) is the main festival in the village since 1998. It takes place in July.

Tourist monuments and places
  • The Church of St. Martin, very old, is partly Romanesque but was changed to the 2nd Gothic era. A statuary element painted white stone shows St. Margaret of Antioch slaying the dragon. It dates from the fifteenth century. Saint Martin is the patron of the parish but is also under the protection of Saint Gal, second patron.
  • The local school, completed in 1900, was also a town hall. The building was called Mairie-École at the time.
  • The Résistance site at Cacherat - Camp Gabriel Peri - which received on 23 October 1943, one of the two groups of escapees from the prison of Le Puy-en-Velay.
  • The Château of Pierrebrune, dating from the thirteenth century, rebuilt to modern, was the residence of the lords of Espinasse. In June 1440 during the Praguerie, King Charles VII, who came from Auzances and went to Montaigut-en-Combraille, passed through Pierrebrune.
  • The War Memorial in front of the church.
  • The local school
  • The Resistance site at Cacherat
  • The War Memorial
  • The Church of St. Martin

See also

References
  1. "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  2. Inhabitants of Puy-de-Dôme (in French)
  3. Google Maps
  4. Géoportail, IGN (in French)
  5. List of Mayors of Espinasse (in French)
  6. Données Cassini, EHESS
  7. Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
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