Langlade (Gard)

Langlade is a common French, located in the department of the Gard and the area Languedoc-Roussillon.

Geography

Langlade is a typical village of the Vaunage (valleys of Strokes), located at 12 km of Nimes in the Gard between Languedoc and Provence.

History

Formerly, Langlade was written “Anglade”. One finds in the same way, in Latin certificates “Anglata” as of 1125 and “Anglada” (“ground in the form of angle” in Occitan Provençal) at the 13th century. At that time, the commune counted 65 fires. In 1384, one counted of them nothing any more but five, the famous plague of the middle of the 14th century having made terrible devastations.

One frequently meets this name of village in country of Oc. This fact is due so that formerly, the cultivable ground was always used. Today, mechanization passed by there, and of many “Anglades” ceased being grounds agricultural S to become grounds to be built…

Historical general information: Langlade was a dependence of the marquisat of Calvisson, the Seat of a priory depend on évêché on Nimes before 1790. It was a commune annexed to the parish of Strokes.

Very early, Langlade became celebrates for the quality of its vineyard, the Vieux Langlade, where already the king Rene came to be supplied.

Administration

Demography

Places and monuments

Langlade has important wine fields (six), of which oldest, the Château Langlade.

Curiosity

A small temple Protesting (Vaunage being historically a country of strong Protestant resistance)

During the the Middle Ages, the current temple belonged to the diocese of Nimes.

According to an old charter of 430, under the reign of Louis IV, it was offered to the chapter of the cathedral of Nimes and the quarter of its incomes went to the bishops, the three quarters with the priory of Saint-Baudille.

At the end of the 17th century, Monseigneur Seguier came to visit the parish. He found the church ruined and five catholics in the village.

At the time of the revocation of the edict of Nantes, one recorded many conversions.

Following a report/ratio of the minister of religion, on 27 Ventôse Year XI, the First Consul took a decree the 8 Germinal Year XI which definitively gave the church to the Protestants (this building was at the time one of the rare strengthened churches).

E temple does not miss pace. One reaches it by a small street bordered of old houses and one is in front of a formed apse of hardcore walls thick and separated by pilasters.

The building is surmounted by a pretty bell-tower.

The interior sobriety of this place of worship huguenot underlines the imposing majesty of a semi-circular vault.

A laundrette of the end of the 19th century

The basins of the laundrette of the fountain were built in 1822. July 27th 1817, the municipal council decides a voluntary subscription.

The need for basins is so important that the subscription meets a sharp success: 100 engagements.

A foreground is proposed by the civil engineer Leon Durand in 1819: plan which will be modified in 1822.

September 21st, some city council men write to the Mayor to request widening from five sides of the laundrettes, to allow the work of two women in opposite.

In 1834 and until its death (1850), one of them, Louis Card, will continue the commune for various litigations in connection with the basins (construction and cleaning of aqueducts for the evacuation of the flows of the basins).

The laundrettes had, in 1891, to profit from an appreciable installation: Antoine Paul (Tony) Dombre (Mayor of the commune and founder of the Castle Langlade), respecting the last wills of his/her twin brother Henri-David Dombre, makes build “a hangar to shelter the public laundrettes.

The washerwomen will be from now on with cover of the rain and the sun”. In thanks, the municipality makes place a commemorative plaque that one can always read.

At the 19th century, the search for water becomes inevitable already as well as the reinforcement of the flow of the sources in function. Tests are carried out to improve the flow of the fountain which feeds the laundrette.

In 1902, the mayor submits at his municipal council an estimate to open a gallery “through the solid mass which dominates the village” in order to seek water.

The inexpensive project is guaranteed by the know-how of its author, the architect J. Seraph, which affirms that only a drainage makes it possible to collect the volume of clean water necessary to increase the flow of the fountain. In 1905, the municipality buys 390 m ² grounds in Cabanis in which a gallery of collecting is established.

A gallery of a few tens of meters is dug, it is still visible besides nowadays. But, the doubt is allowed on its effectiveness as for the volume of drained water. The gallery does not seem to be carried out in the long term.

The 20th century will see the mode provisioning to change.

It becomes concerted, arranged and managed by a trade union gathering several communes.

Langlade gives its agreement in 1932 for a financial participation of 276.426 francs. The extraction of water will be done on the commune of Bernis.

It is on August 1st 1938 which water runs for the first time.

This water conveyance which then feeds 13 fountains and 17 hydrants fire, then makes it possible Langlade to face the residential development.

A festival of water proceeds August 26th and 27th 1938. Work on the whole of Vaunage took one year.

A center of the village vaunageol

Although the population of the village increases each year, new more roomy and/or more modern constructions did not degrade a splendid historical center of the village, with its splendid residences of the previous centuries or apparent stone houses.

The station

The station of Langlade is located on what was the line “Nimes - Vigan - Tournemire - Roquefort”.

This last section of line was intended to ensure the transport of the soldiers towards the Larzac.

The railway line passed by Langlade thanks to the action of Mr. Tony Dombre, notable of the village, person in charge of the administration of the Bridges and Chaussées in Gard, and nephew of Charles Dombre, engineer of the railroads and near collaborator to Paulin Talabot (directing of railway company PLM).

To include/understand the role of the station of Langlade, it is necessary to apprehend the creation of the various lines dependant between them.

As of on March 11th 1872, a line is open between Lunel and Sommières, by Junas and Ganges.

July 20th 1874, it is prolonged until Vigan (overall length of 82 km) and on July 11th 1881 will see the creation of a relation “Alès - Farmhouse of Gardiesquissac”, with junction with Lezan towards Anduze.

But the most important route is created on September 30th, 1882, with the connection “Saint-Césaire-Sommières them Mazes Crès (not far from Montpellier)”.

Whereas the relation “Ales - Quissac” could make it possible to divert the trains in the event of obstruction of the line “Alès - Nimes” (it was the case at the time of the tragedy derailment of Nozières in 1957 or the floods having carried the bridge of Ners in 1958), the line “Saint-Césaire-Sommières them Mazes Crès” was designed to allow diversions in the event of obstruction, between Nimes and Montpellier, of the line “Tarascon - Sète”.

These relations thus presented a particularly important strategic interest, in particular on the military level in the event of conflict and of destruction of works of art on the main axes.

One started to see circulating on these lines, of the railcars with vapor, ancestors of the rail-cars, the steam engines towing of the cars equipped with benches out of wooden, then rail-cars FNC and finally of the rail-cars Picasso.

The line “Lunel - Gallargues- Sommières” will be closed on June 1st 1931 for the travellers and, 10 years later, for the goods.

For “Nimes - Vigan”, closings will be progressive: “Sommières - Vigan” on March 9th 1969, and “Nimes - Sommières”, on January 18th 1970.

the SNCF ensures then a road service of substitution, but punctually of the freightings of passenger trains.

Thus circulations after closings took place.

With regard to the goods traffic “Ganges - Vigan” closed on April 1st 1987.

October 3rd 1988, the floods carry the way between Caveirac and Saint-Césaire. It will not be rebuilt.

In 1991, the line “Nimes - Ganges” is definitively closed.

This line knew an important goods traffic for the time and the station of Langlade dispatched many coaches of wine barrels or table grapes (chasselas).

The station of Langlade in the same way played a big role in the supply goods of the Vaunage, under the German occupation.

The building forms integral part of the inheritance.

Many are the schoolboys and high-school pupils to have borrowed the rail-car to go in their schools.

Today, the general advice of the Gard repurchased the railway to make a Green lane of it with the use of the walkers and other cyclists.

The common one acquired part of the influence the SNCF to arrange tourist activities and cultural there currently being studied.

Capitelles

The capitelles ones: many in Vaunage and in particular in Langlade, they are often hidden in the Garrigue which invaded the grounds after the destruction of the vine by the Phylloxéra.

A very beautiful restored windmill

This mill is located on a height dominating Langlade.

One reaches it by the Way of the Mill-with-wind.

The mill of Langlade is mentioned for the first time in 1211, at the time of a recognition passed through Guillaume Alban, for two grounds located with the place known as " AD Molinar " (with the Mill).

Cartulaire of the Chapter of Nismes (Nimes), gives of the same a report on ecclesiastical possessions on the territory of Langlade.

In 1597, second mention during the establishment of the comtois with clausades, concerning the land royalty.

In 1634, the Chart of Tassin locates the mill on a height.

In 1693, the mill is still a noble good, it is thus free from size.

Today, it is known like “Mill of Rider” in remembering the halt made by Jean Cavalier, chief Camisard (Camisards: resistant Protestants), on April 15th 1704, day of the defeat with Nages. Its troop made up of 800 infantrymen and 200 riders left Caveirac where they had placed the night to join Langlade.

At the end of the afternoon, encircled of all shares, Cavalier gains the heights of Langlade.

Embusqué close to the mill, the battalion of Hainaut (dragons of the King) awaited it. It was the bloodiest moment of the mill…

In 1781, the mill is located on the chart of Cassini.

In 1809, the mill is mentioned in the census of the mills in activity.

In 1835, it is mentioned on the Napoléonien land register. At the time, large surfaces were reserved for cereals and the activity of the miller was important in Vaunage.

Until the appearance of flour-millings known as industrial in 1809 in Nimes and the disappearance of cereals to the profit of the extension of the vineyards, the beginning of the 19th century.

In 1868, the mill is mentioned on the topographic dictionary of the Gard of E. Germinate-Durand.

In 1906, thirty hectares of pines of Alep are planted in Castellas and the Windmill.

In 1992, it becomes property of the commune.

The windmill " Cavalier" on June 19th 2004 was restored.

Recently restored in its authenticity, it is currently in perfect operating condition with a revolving roof which makes it possible to the miller to follow the direction of the wind.

In addition to his tower in the shape of regular cylindrical barrel, one can note the nobility of his stone crown of size which supports a directional roof but also its mysterious loopholes, of which the use could be the ventilation of the grinding stones and the mechanism, thus avoiding the heating.

Its equipment is traditional, a pair of grinding stones pulled by the wings with fabrics.

The Vineyard

The vine is a traditional culture in Vaunage and its development goes back to the Romains. The king Rene (last of princes d' Anjou, reigning on the Provence, the the Loire, the Lorraine , the Italy, the Central Europe), installed with Tarascon, and other foreign Lords already came to supply themselves there. Then by an edict of November 10th 1696, Louis XIV granted to Langlade Money armorial bearings “with three props of Sinobre”, confirming the notoriety whose the wines enjoyed Langlade attached to the royal court.

The establishment of the vineyard in garrigues seems to go up with 1597, reaching 140 hectares in 1652.

Its extension is often made by usurpation communal Biens with the detriment of the waste lands.

At the dawn of the 19th century, the vineyard occupying 70% of the culture, becomes dominant culture: 600 hectares of vines with small output.

Between 1873 and 1876, the Phylloxéra, small insect from America, attacks the roots of the vine and involves the complete destruction of the vineyard.

In 1882, replanting starts in particular with Mr. Tony Dombre to reach 200 hectares in 1904, primarily in plain and slopes. Some pieces of vines remain in garrigues until in 1960.

Replanting is then taken again by the families Boissier, Hutter, Dufes-Martin (from now on Van Der Bent) and Sarran-Cadène (descendants of Dombre).

Part of the wines of Langlade is maintained in the foreground of quality, during the creation of the delimited wines of Higher Quality (VDQS) in 1945, while appearing in this classification. In 1905 the VDQS “Slopes of Languedoc” become wines of name of controlled origin (AOC) with, for only commune of Gard, Langlade.

Thus for 20 years, the languid vineyard (100 hectares in 2000) has gone back to grow by finding the historical soil of the “Vieux Langlade”, the scrubland, with its burned stony sun grounds, its scents of holm oaks and genévriers, in the hope that the dynamism of its vine growers and all the commune will be rewarded by the recognition for its name as grown, historical name used at the beginning of the 20th century and ever repealed.

The Langlade Castle

The Sucker of this castle knows a single architecture. She includes/understands wine storehouses of wine making, wine storehouses of breeding out of barrels, wine storehouses of breeding in the lightnings of oak of Russia or tanks.

An astonishing vault in parefeuilles provençaux double the roof traditional in tiles and created a motionless, ensuring a constant thermo isolation and hygrometrical air space all the year.

The access to the upper floor (top of the lightnings and the tanks) is allowed by an external, inclined covered way and circumventing the cellar. The buckets with grape harvest are emptied directly by gravity, out of whole grapes, in the tanks of fermentation.

Under the covered way, half-sunken obscure cellars allow a good conservation of the various years.

Since 1901, the installation of the storeroom was devoted by a Diploma of Honor obtained to the Contest of the Company of Agriculture of Gard.

Personalities related to the commune

Antoine Paul Dombre known as Tony Dombre (1834 - 1899):

Polytechnicien, inspector as a chief of the Bridges and Chaussées, person in charge of the administration of the Bridges & Roadways in the Department of Gard, mayor of Langlade, founder of the Cellar of the Castle Langlade (cellar of the industrial type and with single architecture), initiator of replanting following the devastations of the Phylloxéra between 1871 and 1876, promoter of a railway line passing by Langlade, giver with his brother Henri-David Dombre of the Laundrette of Langlade, knight of the Legion of honor.

The Dombre family was a family very established in the Gard. Tony Dombre goes down thus from rich person traders in silk trade of Low the the Cevennes.

His wife, Marie Rossel, are a small niece of the astronomer Benjamin Valz, downward direct of the naturalist Pierre Baux and the trader and politician Jean Valz; and a cousin far away from the officer Louis-Nathaniel Rossel (Minister for the war of the Common of Paris).

the Dombre family:

In particular Charles Leon Dombre (father of Tony Dombre), Charles Célestin Dombre (also chevalier of the Legion of Honor; uncle de Tony Dombre), David Dombre (grandfather of Tony Dombre), Henri and David Dombre (brother and cousin, also knight of the Legion of onnor) made much for the economic development of the village.

the families Boissier, Hutter, Dufes-Martin (from now on Van Der Bent) and Sarran-Cadène (in the past Dombre):

It is they which started again the vini-vine growing in the village.

Related bond

Old Langlade
Vaunage
Castle Langlade
Tony Dombre

See too

Common of Gard

External bonds

Langlade nonofficial site.
Official site of the festival committee of the commune of Langlade in Gard
Langlade on the site of the national geographical Institute
Langlade on the site of INSEE
Langlade on the site of Quid
Localization of Langlade on a chart of France and communes bordering
Plane on Langlade on Mapquest

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