Gardie is a commune

Communes of France

The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...

 in the Aude

Aude

Aude is a department in south-central France named after the river Aude. The local council also calls the department "Cathar Country".Aude is also a frequent feminine French given name in Francophone countries, deriving initially from Aude or Oda, a wife of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine, and mother...

 department in southern France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

.

Geography

It is a small hilltop village on the edge of the Barris stream valley. It is in the Canton of St Hilaire, 4 km away.

History

The village has Roman

Roman Empire

The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....

 origins and was named Gardiaco. It was probably built as a guardpost for the nearby St Hilaire Abbey.

The centre of the village has a Circulade, a circle of old houses that would have originally been built around the perimeter of the now missing chateau as a defensive feature. It was possible to circumvent the village through the attics of these houses. The church has a small tower topped by a cast iron frame cap and bells.

Population

Economy

Gardie is a farming village with the main crop being grapes. Most of the grapes go to produce the famous Blanguette de Limoux or Limoux A.O.C. red wine.