Argelès-sur-Mer

Argelès -sur -Mer ( Catalan: Argelers de la marenda or simply Argelers ) is a town with 9939 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2011 ) in the department of Pyrénées- Orientales in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France.

Location

The city is located on the Mediterranean Sea on the northern end of the Vermilion in the La marenda at the foot of Albères about 25 kilometers northwest of the Spanish border at Cerbère. The nearest large town is the city about 23 kilometers north- west of Perpignan located with about 117,000 inhabitants; are also worth seeing the place and the Cathedral of Elne ( nine kilometers north-west ). The city has with the district Argelès -Plage over seven kilometers portion on the flat sandy beaches of the coast of Roussillon and the district Le Racou beyond the port where the Albères come to the coast to the creeks of the Vermilion Coast, then on the Spanish side of Costa Brava ( " Wild Coast ') is called.

Demographics

In the first census in France in 1793 Argeles was a major fishing village and had 847 inhabitants. From the mid- 19th to the mid 20th century the population was roughly constant at 2,500 to 3,000 people.

Economy

Among the most important source of revenue for the city and the region include - in addition to the traditional fruit and wine with the specialty Muscat - tourism, which also shapes the character of the place and made in the past decades for a steady population growth.

History

Argelès is part of the well into the prehistoric settlement traceable history of the Mediterranean. In the urban area there are Neolithic dolmens and a Bronze Age archaeological site. Documented the location is first mentioned in 879 as Villa de Argilariis.

With the Roussillon lived through town and surrounding areas as part of Catalonia until the Treaty of the Pyrenees (1659 ) a checkered history between Spain and France.

Towards the end of the Spanish Civil War, the city reached a dubious reputation, because the French government in 1939 there (as in other coastal towns of Roussillon, including Agde and Saint- Cyprien (Pyrénées -Orientales) ) for tens of thousands of refugees and former Interbrigadisten the beach at Argelès, the internment Argelès -sur -Mer (French: Camp de Concentration) built. To commemorate the suffering of the detainees there after the Second World War, a memorial was erected.

After the city had joined forces in 2002 with seven other municipalities in the canton of Communauté de communes des Albères with about 25,000 inhabitants, it merged on 1 January 2007 with the neighboring Communauté de communes de la Vermilion to a new, larger community association that the Communauté de communes bears names of Albères et de la Vermilion.

Attractions

Church of Saint -Laurent -du -Mont

- Monument historique

Chapel Saint- Jérôme

Other

• Church of Our Lady del Prat - Monument historique - is in its present form, a building from the 15th century. A previous building stood here but in the year 920 Interestingly, the built in Romanic style of bell tower.
• Castle Château de Pujols (11th century) - Monument historique -; the mighty residential tower ( donjon ) is about 1 km north of Argelès. Near the tower there is a restored covered well shaft.
• Château de Valmy, which until 1890 was built manor house stands in 1888 about 3 km south of Argelès in the forest of Valmy ( Forêt de Valmy ); it was the mansion of a rich cigarette manufacturer.
• Tower tour Massane; the geböschte in its lower portion medieval watch tower (13th century ) stands on top of a mountain above the forest of Valmy in 793 meters above sea level and is accessible only within an approximately 3 - hour hike.

In addition to the churches already mentioned are in the vicinity of Argelès other Romanesque chapels, whose purpose ( hermitage, Priory Church, parish church, chapel, etc.) can only be speculated:

• Saint- Ferréol -de- la -Pave - Monument historique - (about 5 miles west): Pre-Romanesque building ( 10th century ) with horseshoe-shaped apse
• Taxo d' Ava II, medieval castle (11th century) with a rare two-aisled church - (northwest around 5 km ) - Monument historique
• Notre -Dame-de -Vie: Romanesque chapel (11th century) with Klausner apartment. Nearby: Chapel of Saint- Jérôme

The Friends of megalithic come in the mountains of Albères their money - a total of 12 have been counted Dolmen; two of which are located not far from each other in the forest of Valmy (about 5 km south):

• Dolmen Cava de l' Alarb - Monument historique
• Dolmen Collet de Collioure - Monument historique - Dolmen with missing cover plate

The museum Casa de les Albères located in the center and offers exhibits on the history of the city and the living conditions and equipment of life in the 19th century and earlier.

Pictures

Altstadtstraße

Villa

Château de Valmy

Twinning

• Hürth ( Germany ) since 1988
• Montgat (Catalonia ) since 1989

The partnership with the town of Hürth near Cologne is maintained on both sides of partnership associations and is thus quite lively. Also, the Collège des Alberes leads the Ernst - Mach- school through a student exchange with mutual short visits.