Taulignan

Taulignan is a southern French village with 1618 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2011 ) in the department of Drôme in the Rhône -Alpes. It belongs to the canton of Grignan and its local Association Pays de Grignan.

Geography

Taulignan lies at the foot of the wooded mountain range Montagne de la Lance, who belongs to the Provencal Alps, about 30 kilometers southeast of Montelimar, 7 kilometers northwest of Valréas and 6.4 kilometers northeast of the cantonal capital of Grignan, between the neighboring communities Montbrison- sur -Lez in Southeast and Salles- sous -Bois in the northwest. The Lez flows east, the Berre flows north-west of the town center by the municipality.

History

Taulignan is a medieval town with a fortified town center. In the 12th century it was the seat of a Seigneurie, which belonged to the barony of Montauban- sur- l'Ouvèze. Bertrand de Taulignan sold the Seigneurie 1295 to the Count of Valentinois, Aymar de Poitiers IV. Until the French Revolution (1789-1799) the town was in the possession of various families. Last Burgherrin was the Nicole de Lamoignon de Senozan († May 1794 ) widow, a sister of Chrétien -Guillaume de Lamoignon de Malesherbes ( 1721-1794 ). It was in 1793 during the French Revolution together with her friend, the Princess Élisabeth Philippine Marie Hélène de Bourbon ( 1764-1794 ), imprisoned and sentenced to death on the scaffold. In the same year the castle was razed. She had about one third of the buildings inside the fortified walls of the city. In addition Taulignan received in 1793 the status of a municipality and in 1801 the right to local self-government.

The population began to rise at the beginning of the 19th century and reached its peak in 1851 ( 2349 ), at the beginning of the 20th century, it fell sharply. Least inhabitants had Taulignan 1954 (1046), after which the population rose again slightly and has hardly changed since 1990.

Economy

In the 19th century the city grew thanks to the silk industry, by the more than 400 workers were employed. Today there is a silk museum on site, which is reminiscent of that time.

The vineyards of the village lying in the wine region of the southern Rhone Valley. The wines may be marketed under the appellations of Côtes du Rhône and Côtes du Rhône Villages stricter quality.