Gard Explained

Gard
Native Name Lang:fr
Type:Department of France
Coordinates:44.1281°N 4.0817°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:France
Subdivision Type1:Region
Subdivision Name1:Occitanie
Seat Type:Prefecture
Seat:Nîmes
Parts Type:Subprefectures
Parts Style:para
P1:Alès
Le Vigan
Leader Party:PS
Leader Title:President of the Departmental Council
Leader Name:Françoise Laurent-Perrigot[1]
Unit Pref:Metric
Area Total Km2:5853
Population Rank:32nd
Population Density Km2:auto
Blank Name Sec1:Department number
Blank Info Sec1:30
Blank Name Sec2:Arrondissements
Blank Info Sec2:3
Blank1 Name Sec2:Cantons
Blank1 Info Sec2:23
Blank2 Name Sec2:Communes
Blank2 Info Sec2:351
Timezone1:CET
Utc Offset1:+1
Timezone1 Dst:CEST
Utc Offset1 Dst:+2
Footnotes: French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

Gard (in French pronounced as /ɡaʁ/) is a department in Southern France, located in the region of Occitanie. It had a population of 748,437 as of 2019;[2] its prefecture is Nîmes.

The department is named after the river Gardon. In recent decades of the 21st century, local administration and French speakers have returned to the original Occitan name of the river, Gard (in Occitan (post 1500); pronounced as /gaɾ/). It is part of a revival of Occitan culture.

History

In classical times the Gard area was settled by Romans and their allies. They built the Via Domitia across the region in 118 BC. Centuries later, on 4 March 1790, Gard was one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution. It comprised the ancient province of Languedoc.

Originally this department was to include the canton of Ganges, but Ganges was transferred to the neighbouring department of Hérault. In return, Gard was assigned the fishing port of Aigues Mortes, which gave the department its own outlet to the Gulf of Lion on the Mediterranean Sea.

During the middle of the nineteenth century the prefecture, traditionally a centre of commerce with a manufacturing sector focused on textiles, was an early beneficiary of railway development, becoming an important railway junction. Several luxurious hotels were built, and the improved market access provided by the railways also encouraged, initially, a rapid growth in wine growing. But many winegrowers were ruined when the vineyards were infected with phylloxera in 1872.

Geography

Gard is part of the region of Occitanie and is surrounded by the departments of Hérault, Lozère, Aveyron, Bouches-du-Rhône, Vaucluse and Ardèche. It has a short coastline to the south on the Mediterranean Sea. The highest point in the department is Mont Aigoual.

In the first quarter of the 21st century, the department has suffered serious flooding. The region has also been subject to some of the highest recorded temperatures in France's history as climate change alters summer heat.[3]

Demographics

Population development since 1791:

The inhabitants of Gard are called "Gardois". The most populous commune is Nîmes, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are eight communes that have more than 10,000 inhabitants each:[2]

CommunePopulation (2019)
Nîmes148,561
Alès41,837
Bagnols-sur-Cèze18,091
Beaucaire15,906
Saint-Gilles13,931
Villeneuve-lès-Avignon12,216
Vauvert11,492
Pont-Saint-Esprit10,369

Politics

In the closely contested first round of the 2012 presidential election, Gard was the only department to vote for the National Front candidate Marine Le Pen by a slim plurality, with 25.51% of the vote. The incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy of the Union for a Popular Movement party received 24.86% of the vote, while Socialist candidate François Hollande received 24.11% of the vote share.[4]

Departmental Council

The President of the Departmental Council has been Françoise Laurent-Perrigot of the Socialist Party (PS) since 2021.

Party Seats
The Republicans (LR) 12
Socialist Party (PS) 10
Union of Democrats and Independents (UDI) 7
French Communist Party (PCF) 6
Miscellaneous left (DVG) 4
National Rally (FN) 4
Europe Ecology – The Greens (EELV) 2
Miscellaneous right (DVD) 1

Members of the National Assembly

In the 2022 legislative election, Gard elected the following representatives to the National Assembly:

ConstituencyMemberParty
Gard's 1st constituencyYoann GilletNational Rally
Gard's 2nd constituencyNicolas MeizonnetNational Rally
Gard's 3rd constituencyPascale BordesNational Rally
Gard's 4th constituencyPierre MeurinNational Rally
Gard's 5th constituencyMichel SalaLa France Insoumise
Gard's 6th constituencyPhilippe BertaMoDem

Tourism

Gard contains a part of the Cévennes National Park. There are important Roman architectural remains in Nîmes, as well as the famous Roman aqueduct, the Pont du Gard.

Gard is also home to the source of Perrier, a carbonated mineral water sold both in France and internationally on a large scale. The spring and facility are located just south-east of the commune of Vergèze.

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux. data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 4 May 2022. fr.
  2. https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/fichier/6011060/dep30.pdf Populations légales 2019: 30 Gard
  3. Web site: France endures its hottest day ever as Europe swelters in heat wave. CNN. 28 June 2019.
  4. Web site: Résultats Gard - Présidentielle 2012 - 1er et 2nd tour. Le Monde.fr. 11 April 2022.