The department was created with the French revolution, the March 4th 1790 pursuant to the law of the December 22nd 1789. It corresponds roughly to old évêché of the Gévaudan, which was part of old the province of the Languedoc. In Gévaudan the canton of Saugues (Haute-Loire) was withdrawn but was added those of Villefort and Meyrueis.

The foundation of the department

The history of the Lozere is in the continuity of that of the Gévaudan. The department was created the January 4th 1790 by the constituent Assembly to replace the Provinces of France considered to be contrary with the homogeneity of the Nation. In a preoccupation with a rationality, the departments accepted a similar architecture: a sufficiently small portion of territory to be managed easily by a Chief town. The aforementioned chief town was, for the Lozere, the town of Mende, episcopal see and capital of the Gévaudan at this time.

There was a long time some discussion about dividing Lozere, considered to be too small in surface to make a department, between its neighbors (Cantal, Haute-Loire, Aveyron and Gard). But in front of the sling of the inhabitants of Gévaudan, that was not done.

At the time to choose a name (that of Gévaudan too being associated with the poverty of the country), several proposals were made, like " High Cévennes" (name very snuffed in Paris) or " Sources" (the nickname of the department of country of the sources comes to him from its many sources and owing to the fact that no water court returns in the department). Finally the Lozere term will be kept, name carried until there by the mountain: the Mount Lozere and by a water court located at the same place.

Second world war

A maquis of German antifascists fought the German army, the weapons with the hand, in 1943 and 1944. It was directed by Otto Kühne.

Moreover three maquis (one on the Aubrac, another in the the Cevennes and the other towards the Mount Mouchet) their grounds vis-a-vis the Nazis defended.

See too

Sources and references

Random links:

Fiddle | Exposure of the products of the Republic | William Powell | Felip Aner d' Esteve | The Oates' Valor