Privas
Encyclopedia
Privas is a commune
of France, capital of the Ardèche
department. It is the second-smallest administrative center of any department in France, larger than only the commune of Foix
. It is the fifth-largest commune in the Ardèche, behind Annonay
, Aubenas
, Guilherand-Granges
, and Tournon-sur-Rhône
. It was the location of the 1629 Siege of Privas
. today Privas is known for the puree made from the local chestnut
s, and for its sweetened marron glacé.
dating to the beginning of the Empire
, as well as a medieval burying-ground. Moulds for counterfeiting coinage found in the 19th century on the slopes of Mont-Toulon had not been interpretable as signifying a local centre of population.
The earliest bourg of Privas developed around the church of Saint-Thomas (place de la République), a dependency of the Cluniac priory of Rompon. The château
(castri) of Privas on the site of the present collège-couvent des Récollets is not attested prior to the 13th century, when the town was walled. Laid waste in 1621 and again following the siege of 1629, nothing of it remains.
In the twelfth century Privas belonged to the seigeurie of the Poitiers-Valentinois, comtes de Valence, whose liege lords were the counts of Toulouse
. Aymar de Poitiers, in 1281, and his son in 1309, granted charters to the town, guaranteeing its traditional liberties, and its fiscal, economic and military rights.
In the 13th century the town expanded from two originals centres, Bize and Clastre, to develop on the level towards the east, in two new quarters, Claux and Mazel.
In the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation
took swift and deep roots in Privas, among common people, the high bourgeoisie and the nobles alike. Fierce repression was organized: many protestant inhabitants were killed, and others fled to Geneva
. Nevertheless, the reform movement spread, and for nearly seventy years no Catholic mass was said at Privas, where the church itself was demolished in 1570 and the French garrison refused entry. There were no Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacres at Privas.
Though the king's mistress Diane de Poitiers
was made baronne of Chalencon and of Privas, and in 1566 the barony was divided between her two daughters, the elder retaining the honour of Privas, in the French Wars of Religion
Privas remained a major centre of Huguenots, called the "Rampart of Reform", and the "Geneva of the country", a symbol of resistance to the Catholic monarchy. The seigneurie was sold to Jacques de Chambaud, a head of the protestants, who became the first Huguenot seigneur of Privas.
In the Huguenot rebellions
of 1621–29, Privas was besieged
in 1629 by royal forces, with Louis XIII
in attendance. Defended by Montbrun with 800 men, the city was taken and destroyed.
In 1790, with the reordering of the French Revolution
, Privas, in alternation with Annonay
, Aubenas, Bourg-Saint-Andéol and Tournon-sur-Rhône, became an administrative centre of Ardèche. After a brief interval as chef-lieu of its district, it was attached to the district of Coiron.
.
, Italy Weilburg
, Germany Wetherby
, United Kingdom Zevenaar
, Netherlands
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...
of France, capital of the Ardèche
Ardèche
Ardèche is a department in south-central France named after the Ardèche River.- History :The area has been inhabited by humans at least since the Upper Paleolithic, as attested by the famous cave paintings at Chauvet Pont d'Arc. The plateau of the Ardeche River has extensive standing stones ,...
department. It is the second-smallest administrative center of any department in France, larger than only the commune of Foix
Foix
Foix is a commune, the capital of the Ariège department in southwestern France. It is the least populous administrative centre of a department in all of France, although it is only very slightly smaller than Privas...
. It is the fifth-largest commune in the Ardèche, behind Annonay
Annonay
Annonay is a commune in the north of the Ardèche department in the Rhône-Alpes region in southern France. It is the most populous commune in the Ardèche department, although it is not the capital, which resides in the smaller town of Privas.-Geography:...
, Aubenas
Aubenas
Aubenas is a commune in the southern part of the Ardèche department in the Rhône Valley in southern France.It is the seat of several government offices...
, Guilherand-Granges
Guilherand-Granges
Guilherand-Granges is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France.-Population:-References:*...
, and Tournon-sur-Rhône
Tournon-sur-Rhône
Tournon-sur-Rhône is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France.-Geography:It is located on the right bank of the Rhône River, opposite Tain-l'Hermitage, which is located in the Drôme département...
. It was the location of the 1629 Siege of Privas
Siege of Privas
The Siege of Privas was undertaken by Louis XIII of France from 14 May 1629, and the city of Privas was captured on 28 May 1629. It was one of the last events of the Huguenot rebellions .-Context:...
. today Privas is known for the puree made from the local chestnut
Chestnut
Chestnut , some species called chinkapin or chinquapin, is a genus of eight or nine species of deciduous trees and shrubs in the beech family Fagaceae, native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce.-Species:The chestnut belongs to the...
s, and for its sweetened marron glacé.
History
The earliest traces of the commune are attested in the hamlet of Lac where recent archaeological excavations have revealed a Roman villaRoman villa
A Roman villa is a villa that was built or lived in during the Roman republic and the Roman Empire. A villa was originally a Roman country house built for the upper class...
dating to the beginning of the Empire
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....
, as well as a medieval burying-ground. Moulds for counterfeiting coinage found in the 19th century on the slopes of Mont-Toulon had not been interpretable as signifying a local centre of population.
The earliest bourg of Privas developed around the church of Saint-Thomas (place de la République), a dependency of the Cluniac priory of Rompon. The château
Château
A château is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor or a country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally—and still most frequently—in French-speaking regions...
(castri) of Privas on the site of the present collège-couvent des Récollets is not attested prior to the 13th century, when the town was walled. Laid waste in 1621 and again following the siege of 1629, nothing of it remains.
In the twelfth century Privas belonged to the seigeurie of the Poitiers-Valentinois, comtes de Valence, whose liege lords were the counts of Toulouse
Counts of Toulouse
The first Counts of Toulouse were the administrators of the city and its environs under the Merovingians. No succession of such royal appointees is known, though a few names survive to the present...
. Aymar de Poitiers, in 1281, and his son in 1309, granted charters to the town, guaranteeing its traditional liberties, and its fiscal, economic and military rights.
In the 13th century the town expanded from two originals centres, Bize and Clastre, to develop on the level towards the east, in two new quarters, Claux and Mazel.
In the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
took swift and deep roots in Privas, among common people, the high bourgeoisie and the nobles alike. Fierce repression was organized: many protestant inhabitants were killed, and others fled to Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. Nevertheless, the reform movement spread, and for nearly seventy years no Catholic mass was said at Privas, where the church itself was demolished in 1570 and the French garrison refused entry. There were no Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacres at Privas.
Though the king's mistress Diane de Poitiers
Diane de Poitiers
Diane de Poitiers was a French noblewoman and a prominent courtier at the courts of kings Francis I and his son, Henry II of France. She became notorious as the latter's favourite mistress...
was made baronne of Chalencon and of Privas, and in 1566 the barony was divided between her two daughters, the elder retaining the honour of Privas, in the French Wars of Religion
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
Privas remained a major centre of Huguenots, called the "Rampart of Reform", and the "Geneva of the country", a symbol of resistance to the Catholic monarchy. The seigneurie was sold to Jacques de Chambaud, a head of the protestants, who became the first Huguenot seigneur of Privas.
In the Huguenot rebellions
Huguenot rebellions
The Huguenot rebellions, sometimes called the Rohan Wars after the Huguenot leader Henri de Rohan, refers to events of the 1620s in which French Protestants , mainly located in southwestern France, revolted against royal authority...
of 1621–29, Privas was besieged
Siege of Privas
The Siege of Privas was undertaken by Louis XIII of France from 14 May 1629, and the city of Privas was captured on 28 May 1629. It was one of the last events of the Huguenot rebellions .-Context:...
in 1629 by royal forces, with Louis XIII
Louis XIII of France
Louis XIII was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1610 to 1643.Louis was only eight years old when he succeeded his father. His mother, Marie de Medici, acted as regent during Louis' minority...
in attendance. Defended by Montbrun with 800 men, the city was taken and destroyed.
In 1790, with the reordering of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, Privas, in alternation with Annonay
Annonay
Annonay is a commune in the north of the Ardèche department in the Rhône-Alpes region in southern France. It is the most populous commune in the Ardèche department, although it is not the capital, which resides in the smaller town of Privas.-Geography:...
, Aubenas, Bourg-Saint-Andéol and Tournon-sur-Rhône, became an administrative centre of Ardèche. After a brief interval as chef-lieu of its district, it was attached to the district of Coiron.
Population
Personalities
It is the birthplace of French footballer Cyril ThéréauCyril Théréau
Cyril Théréau, , , is a French footballer, who plays for the Italian Serie A club Chievo Verona, as a striker.Although he is very tall, he has a good ball shoooting skills and is a technical player.-Club career:...
.
Twin towns
Privas is twinned with: TortonaTortona
Tortona is a comune of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines.-History:...
, Italy Weilburg
Weilburg
Weilburg is, with just under 14,000 inhabitants, the third biggest town in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany, after Limburg an der Lahn and Bad Camberg.- Location :...
, Germany Wetherby
Wetherby
Wetherby is a market town and civil parish within the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Wharfe, and has been for centuries a crossing place and staging post on the Great North Road, being mid-way between London and Edinburgh...
, United Kingdom Zevenaar
Zevenaar
Zevenaar is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands, near the border with Germany.- Population centres :*Angerlo*Babberich*Giesbeek*Lathum*Ooy*Oud Zevenaar*Zevenaar...
, Netherlands