Lagarde, Ariège

Lagarde
The church in Lagarde The church in Lagarde
Coat of arms of Lagarde Coat of arms
Lagarde
Location within Midi-Pyrénées region Lagarde
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées
Department	Ariège
Arrondissement	Pamiers
Canton	Mirepoix
Intercommunality	Pays de Mirepoix
Government
• Mayor (2008–2014)	Anne-Marie Milesi
Area1	11.93 km2 (4.61 sq mi)
Population (2008)2	180
• Density	15/km2 (39/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	09150 / 09500
Elevation	316–543 m (1,037–1,781 ft) (avg. 327 m or 1,073 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Lagarde is a commune in the Ariège department in southwestern France.

History

On 25 May 1969, the commune of Lagarde was struck by a tornado of the F3 type. It destroyed nearby hamlets and transportation in the village and the surrounding area. A few hours later in the department of Aude the tornado devastated the village of Leuc. Such a wave of powerful tornadoes is rare in France.

Sights

Chateau

The Château de Lagarde is an imposing medieval building constructed in the 11th century with the first square tower (1063–1065) by Ramiro I, King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona. Between the 1176 and 1180 the chateau developed with 4 square towers and with a rectangular entry with a door made out of wood, a drawbridge and ditch at the foot of the walls.

File:Lagarde 0.jpg

Terrace of the château

In the middle of the beautiful paved yard is a well which is 62 meters depth and 2 meters in diameter cut with stone 1.20 metres thick. Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester allotted the village of Lagarde and its castle to Guy I of Lévis, lieutenant of his army, in 1212. This was conducted after Simon de Montfort convened at Pamiers in a general meeting of nobles, prelates and noted middle-class men, where they drew up a 46 article administration doctrine of the place. It was ratified by the Treaty of Paris and signed on 12 April 1229 on the square of Notre-Dame.

File:Chateau Lagarde 0.jpg

Chateau de Lagarde

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1962	165	—
1968	213	+29.1%
1975	185	−13.1%
1982	177	−4.3%
1990	172	−2.8%
1999	194	+12.8%
2008	180	−7.2%

See also

• Communes of the Ariège department

References

• INSEE