Saint-Pons-de-Mauchiens
Encyclopedia
Saint-Pons-de-Mauchiens is a commune
in the Hérault
department in Languedoc-Roussillon
in southern France
. Active expat community of mixed origins -from Canada - Uk - Hong Kong plus many others integrated into the 650 person village. Active Bar -Bistro and village site - and plenty of entertainment from the village Comitee des Fetes. An active village blog can be found here.
Saint-Pons-de-Mauchiens is notable for being the only village / town in Herault with a cricket club which plays league and friendly fixtures against visiting touring sides. The club also supports demonstration and coaching of cricket in local village schools.
Saint-Pons-de-Mauchiens A tiny village perched on a hill, St. Pons de Mauchiens is a typical example of the "circulade" type villages dating back to the XI and XII centuries. The castle there was built for the Bishops of Agde in 1199. Just 4km from the village you may also admire a fine mill the : "Moulin de Roquemengarde" on the river Hérault. To really escape from the modern world, there is a fine footpath (17km) that has been recently restored and marked out leading from the outskirts of the village right out into the hilly "garrigue" countryside, perfumed with thyme, lavender and rosemary.
There is a legend around the long name of this very small village : one of the lords of the castle owned a pack of ferocious dogs ("chien" in French) that he let loose at nightfall. One day he arrived home late and the doors to the castle were locked. The dogs did not recognise their master, savagely attacked him at the throat and tore him to pieces !
To capture the character of the village you can view a selection of photographs© Georgia Glynn Smith.
For a comprehensive history of the village please click here . Thanks to Tim Moore for providing this document which is based on a document prepared by the late Gabriel Pargoire, a former mayor of the village.
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 Hérault
Hérault
Hérault is a department in the south of France named after the Hérault river.-History:Hérault is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
department in Languedoc-Roussillon
Languedoc-Roussillon
Languedoc-Roussillon is one of the 27 regions of France. It comprises five departments, and borders the other French regions of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Rhône-Alpes, Auvergne, Midi-Pyrénées on the one side, and Spain, Andorra and the Mediterranean sea on the other side.-Geography:The region is...
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...
. Active expat community of mixed origins -from Canada - Uk - Hong Kong plus many others integrated into the 650 person village. Active Bar -Bistro and village site - and plenty of entertainment from the village Comitee des Fetes. An active village blog can be found here.
Saint-Pons-de-Mauchiens is notable for being the only village / town in Herault with a cricket club which plays league and friendly fixtures against visiting touring sides. The club also supports demonstration and coaching of cricket in local village schools.
Saint-Pons-de-Mauchiens A tiny village perched on a hill, St. Pons de Mauchiens is a typical example of the "circulade" type villages dating back to the XI and XII centuries. The castle there was built for the Bishops of Agde in 1199. Just 4km from the village you may also admire a fine mill the : "Moulin de Roquemengarde" on the river Hérault. To really escape from the modern world, there is a fine footpath (17km) that has been recently restored and marked out leading from the outskirts of the village right out into the hilly "garrigue" countryside, perfumed with thyme, lavender and rosemary.
There is a legend around the long name of this very small village : one of the lords of the castle owned a pack of ferocious dogs ("chien" in French) that he let loose at nightfall. One day he arrived home late and the doors to the castle were locked. The dogs did not recognise their master, savagely attacked him at the throat and tore him to pieces !
To capture the character of the village you can view a selection of photographs© Georgia Glynn Smith.
For a comprehensive history of the village please click here . Thanks to Tim Moore for providing this document which is based on a document prepared by the late Gabriel Pargoire, a former mayor of the village.