Beaucaire is a commune in the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. In 2018, it had a population of 15,718. Its inhabitants are known as Beaucairois or Beaucairoises in French.
Called Ugernum by the Romans, Beaucaire derived its modern name from the medieval Belli Quadrum, which described the pine-clad rock rising abruptly from the river. Alternatively, 'Beaucaire' may be the French version of the Occitan language name 'Bèucaire'. Beaucaire appears as Beaucaire on the 1750 Cassini Map and the same on the 1790 version.
In 2020, the commune was awarded one flower by the National Council of Towns and Villages in Bloom in the Competition of cities and villages in Bloom.
Beaucaire is located on the River Rhône some 15 km south-west of Avignon and 10 km north of Arles. Across the river from Beaucaire lies Tarascon, which is in Bouches-du-Rhône department of Provence. The commune has a large urban area in the north-east with the rest of the commune farmland. There is also an extensive network of irrigation canals covering most of the farmland.
The Rhône river forms the whole eastern border of the commune as it flows south to join the sea at Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône. The river is also the departmental border between Gard and Bouches-du-Rhône. The Canal du Rhône à Sète passes through the commune from Saint-Gilles in the south-west and joins the Rhône in the town. Parallel to the Rhône on its eastern side is a canalised waterway called Laune de Pillet (the branch of the Rhône here called the Bras de Beaucaire). The Rhône and the waterway together create the Ile de Pillet. The river itself has not been navigable to the south since the creation of the Vallebregues barage in 1969; through traffic must navigate the Laune de Pillet. The river lock which once connected the Canal du Rhône à Sète to the Rhône has also been closed since 1969, but the lock is planned to reopen in due course. As it is the north-east arm of the Canal du Rhône à Sète is a cul-de-sac.
From 1217 onward and through the middle ages, Beaucaire was famous for its great medieval fair. People came from all parts, often 300,000 at a time, in mid July. Ships came to trade from Gascony and Brittany, bringing wine, dried fish, sugar, cocoa, coffee, cinnamon, vanilla, lemons, orages, dates, jewelry, wool, lace, oil, soap, linen, cotton, clothing, weapons, hardware, rope, saddlery, harnesses, perfume, pipes and all kinds of pottery and fancy goods. Alas, the fair died in the 19th century when the railway came and rendered such gatherings pointless. Only the wine quays remain.
A large number of buildings and sites in Beaucaire are registered as historical monuments, including:
- Château of Beaucaire and its triangular Keep.
- Many Mansions and facades from the 17th and 18th century.
- The Taureau Cocardier (Cocardier bull) Goya, a sculpture by Camille Soccorsi (1984) in the Place Jean-Jaurès.
- The Paul Laurent bullring where are held bullfight events, and shows and concerts during the feria of Sainte-Madeleine.
- The Sculpture of Drac in the Place de la République.
- The Vieux Mas, a farmhouse from 1900.
- On the plateau north-west of the town, near the cemetery, lie milestones from the ancient Via Domitia. Consisting of a single stone, they are positioned to the right of the way in the direction Beaucaire-Narbonne. There are many due to the addition of a new milestone in the name of the emperor reigning at each significant repair. These multiple milestones are called Columns of Caesar.
|
