Venasque

Venasque
Commune
A general view of Venasque

Coat of arms
Venasque
Location within Provence-A.-C.d'A. region
Venasque
Coordinates: 43°59′49″N 5°08′50″E / 43.9969°N 5.1472°E / 43.9969; 5.1472Coordinates: 43°59′49″N 5°08′50″E / 43.9969°N 5.1472°E / 43.9969; 5.1472
Country France
Region Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Department Vaucluse
Arrondissement Carpentras
Canton Pernes-les-Fontaines
Government
 • Mayor (2001–2008) Gaby Bezert
Area1 35.01 km2 (13.52 sq mi)
Population (2006)2 1,151
 • Density 33/km2 (85/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST) UTC+2 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code 84143 /84210
Elevation 137–639 m (449–2,096 ft)
(avg. 310 m or 1,020 ft)

1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Venasque (Occitan: Venasca) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

The area has many tourist attractions, such as the nearby Mount Vaucluse, a park with several tennis courts, and many open areas. The town of Venasque stands on a hill, surrounded on all sides by ramparts in various states of disrepair. It is home to many notable foreigners, such as Darius Brubeck. It has a beautiful forest surrounding it, with picturesque trails and several shepherds' dwellings made out of rocks piled together to create domed huts.

Venasque church

History

In the high middle ages Venasque was the capital of the Comtat Venaissin, which became a possession of the Holy See in 1271. In 1320 Venasque was replaced as capital of the Comtat by Carpentras. Papal control of the Comtat continued until the 1790s, when it was annexed by France and placed within a new département of the Vaucluse, although the papacy did not recognise the annexation until 1814.

See also

References

    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.