Cévennes
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes (1879) recounts Robert Louis Stevenson's 12-day, 200km solo hiking journey through the sparsely populated and impoverished areas of the Cévennes mountains in south-central France in 1878."--Sholem Stein |
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The word Cévennes comes from the Gaulish Cebenna, which was Latinized by Julius Caesar to Cevenna. The Cévennes are named Cemmenon (Κέμμενων) in Strabo's Geographica.
The average population density is 14/km².
The Cévennes are a part of the Massif Central. They run from southwest (Montagne Noire) to northeast (Monts du Vivarais), with the highest point being the Mont Lozère (1702m). Another notable peak is the Mont Aigoual (1567m). The Loire and Allier flowing towards the Atlantic ocean, the Ardèche and tributary Chassezac, Cèze, the different Gardons to the Rhône, Vidourle, Hérault and Dourbie rivers to the sea source in the Cévennes. The region hosts Cévennes National Park, created in 1970 and the Parc Naturel Régional des Monts d'Ardèche. Two canyons are near the region: the Gorges de la Jonte (the Jonte River gorge) and the Gorges du Tarn (the Tarn River gorge).
The region is known for its large community of Protestants, or Huguenots. During the reign of Louis XIV, much of the Huguenot population fled France, particularly following the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, but the community in the Cévennes largely remained in place, protected from attack by the hilly terrain. In 1702, this population, dubbed the Camisards, rose up against the monarchy. The two sides agreed to peace in 1715.
In French, the adjective derived from "Cévennes" is Cévenol (fem. Cévenole), as in d'Indy's Symphonie Cévenole, a composer of Ardèche origin (known in English as his "Symphony on a French Mountain Air"). The mountain range also gives its name to a meteorological effect when cold air from the Atlantic coast meets warm air of southern winds from the Mediterranean and causes heavy autumnal downpours, often leading to floods. These are called épisodes cévenols.
In 2005 the French boutique car maker PGO introduced a model named for the region.
Transport
3-hour TGV from Paris, 1h30 flight from London and 2h30 drive from Barcelona.
By car
- A61 Toulouse - Narbonne
- A75 Montpellier - Clermont-Ferrand - Paris
- A9 (la Languedocienne) Barcelona (Espagne)Montpellier
By train
- TGV daily between Paris, Lille and Lyon and major cities in the Cevennes.
- Many stations served by trains and buses of the TER network Languedoc-Roussillon : www.ter-sncf.com (UK)
