Cantal
| Cantal | |
|---|---|
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| Coat of arms of the Cantal department | |
| Location | |
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| Administration | |
| Department number: | 15 |
| Region: | Auvergne |
| Prefecture: | Aurillac |
| Subprefectures: | Mauriac Saint-Flour |
| Arrondissements: | 3 |
| Cantons: | 27 |
| Communes: | 260 |
| President of the General Council: | Vincent Descoeur UMP |
| Statistics | |
| Population | Ranked 92nd |
| -1999 | 150,778 |
| Population density: | 26/km² |
| Land area¹: | 5726 km² |
| ¹ French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km². | |
Cantal (Occitan: Cantal, Cantau, Chantal, Chantau) is a department in south-central France. It is named after the Cantal mountain range, a group of extinct, eroded volcanic peaks, which covers much of the department.
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History
Cantal is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from a part of the former province of Auvergne, called Haute-Auvergne.
Culture
Patrimony
The department counts several remarkable buildings. Among them, the Romanesque religious buildings like the churches of Cheylade (century Xi), Dieno or Massiac. Some churches are in the Gothic style like the cathedral of St Pierre de Saint-Flour (century XV).
- Castle of Val in Lanobre (36,500 visitors/year)
- Castle of Anjony in Tournemire (20,000 visitors/year)
- Castle of Pesteils in Polminhac (11,700 visitors/year)
- Castle of the Grapevine in Ally (6,000 visitors/year)
- Castle of Clavières in Ayrens
Festivals
- International festival of street theatre of Aurillac.
- Festival of the music of the world in Murat
- 36 hours : Various little scenes with dances
Museums
- Museum of Art and Arqueologia of Aurillac (34,100 visitors/year)
- The House of the fauna in Murat (23,500 visitors/year)
- Museum of the Géothermia in Calores-Agudo (20,600 visitors/year)
- Museum of the Volcanos in Aurillac (20,100 visitors/year)
- Museum of the ray in Marcenat (11 500 visitors/year)
- Museum of the "Haute Auvergne" in Saint-Flour (11 100 visitors/year)
- The House of the Chestnut in Mourjou (5 200/year)
- Museum of Georges Pompidou in Montboudif (3 500/year)
- Museum of the Accordion in Siran
- Museum of the Agriculture in Auvernia in Coltines
Gastronomy
Dishes of Cantal are made of basic recipes. In origin, they were designed to satisfiy hill farmers. They had very physical work: Looking after cows, the manufacture of cheese, etc.
Thus, ham, cheese, vegetables are at the basis of the dishes in this department, such as:
- The Aligot (also in Aveyron): Cheese (Fresh Tome) with creamed potatoes
- The Truffade: Crushed potatoes with cheese (Fresh Tome) garlic and lardons.
- The Pounti: A dish made with herbs, lard and Swiss chard.
- The typical cheese Cantal, which can be chosen young, old or "entre-deux".
Music & dance - Nature and Sport influences
The typical dance in Cantal is called La Bourée. People dance with the sound of accordion, in typical costumes.
Sport has a very important influence in the culture of the department, especially those in contact with nature. Inhabitants enjoy cycling, excursions, hang gilding, aquatic activities ...
Cantaliens have naturally adapted their behaviour and activities to their environment, made of great spaces, a bit savage.
Geography
The department is part of the current region of Auvergne and is surrounded by the department of Puy-de-Dôme, Haute-Loire, Aveyron, Lot, Lozère, and Corrèze.
The principal towns are Aurillac, Saint-Flour, and Mauriac. The topography of Cantal is hilly, the highest point is Le Plomb du Cantal, 1858 metres.
Climate
The department of the Cantal has different types of climates according to the geographical position.
The west is well watered, thanks to abundant precipitations coming from the Atlantic. The temperatures are smooth generally, whereas the East is much drier and cooler.
As a matter of fact, there is abundant precipitation on the central area. To this fact, it is necessary to add the effect of the altitude: the climate is quite cold in winter (It snows almost every winter) but it can be very hot during the summer (especially in the southern part of the department which has borders with Aveyron and Lot)
In the central part of the department, that it is to say the highest ground, the altitude surpasses 1,000m easily: It can be very cold, The snow falls in abundance and can remains up to six months on the tops. The temperatures can fall, in the heart of the winter, to below -15 °C, whereas at the height of summer 25 °C is often reached.
The weather forecast of the television networks often indicates Aurillac as the coldest city of France in the morning. Whilst not doubting the temperatures observed by Meteo France, it is helpful to explain why. The explanation is simple:
- The scientific weather station of Aurillac is at an altitude of 640 metres.
- The temperature diminishes at 1 °C each 150 m.
- Meteo France only puts an index of 30 cities on the map and Aurillac is the only city at this altitude.
These low morning temperatures could indicate an inhospitable place with a grey and low sky. The reality is totally different: In Aurillac fog is rare and disappears quickly. There is generous sun all year long and the wind is not usually strong. Cantal is well South (same latitude as Bordeaux) and the annual sunshine hours show it: We just have to compare the annual number of hours of sunshine (average from 1991 to 2000):
Nimes: 2590 h - Millau : 2120 h - Aurillac: 2080 h - Toulouse: 2010 h - Bordeaux: 1990 h - Lyon: 1930 h - Limoges: 1870 h - Tours: 1800 h - Nantes: 1690 h - Paris: 1630 h.
The Cantal is a mountainous department whose altitude varies between 250 m in the valley of the Lot River and 1855 m in the top of Plomb du Cantal. The temperature variations can be very high from one place to another. It is not colder in the Cantal than in other mountainous regions like the Vosges or Jura. The prevailing winds and the relief divide the Cantal into 4 climatic zones:
- The West is subject to oceanic winds which bring rains.
- The mounts of the Cantal and the Cézallier, which create a rain shadow, have a specific climate: it rains and snows quite often.
- The Planèze of Saint-Flour and the region of Massiac receive less precipitation, owing to winds coming from the North and the South.
- The plateaus of the Margeride and the Aubrac have harsh winters and pleasant summers.
Communes of Cantal are regularly submitted to violent summer storms. According to specialists, the lightning flashes in this department are among the most spectacular in France.
Economy
- Agriculture and animal husbandry (Aubrac and Salers cows)
- Craft industry is still very prevalent: Joinery, restoration of dwellings, small manufacturing and maintenance of private gardens ...
- Family, festival and winter tourism.
Demography
The inhabitants of the department are called Cantaliens or Cantalous.
Cantal is still one of the most isolated and unpopulated French departments (with Lozère and Creuse). Its capital, Aurillac, is the Departmental Capital the furthest from a motorway in France.
Tourism
Located in the Parc Regional des Volcans d’Auvergne, the Cantal is a department of little urbanization. The main industry is tourism, especially rural tourism.
The most visited places are Puy Mary (1787 m) considered to be one of the prettiest panoramas in Europe, the Plomb du Cantal (1855 m), the village of Salers, the Gorges of the Truyère (with the Garabit viaduct, the castle of Alleuze), the town of Boisset, Pierrefort...). The Parc naturel des Volcans d’Auvergne features several inactive volcanoes. Cantal also has numerous castles.
In spring and summer
Among the various activities offered in this department, the "Massif Cantalien" can be discovered through walking, horseback riding or mountain biking excursions (tracks are especially designed for this). Aquatic sports are also popular, thanks to numerous lakes.
The department also proposes more classical activities like mountaineering, canoeing or fishing. The landscape also allows the practice of free flight : Base jump fans frequent the sector around the Puy Mary or the Valley of Brezon.
In winter
Thanks to its landscape, Cantal can count on a good snow level, which allows winter sports. The station of the Lioran (greatest ski-resort of the Massif Central) allows alpine skiing (with specific adaptations for snowboard) or ice-skating. Excursions in snow shoes are also possible. The department has several hundred kilometers of cross-country skiing tracks.
See also
- Cantons of the Cantal department
- Communes of the Cantal department
- Arrondissements of the Cantal department
External links
- (French) Prefecture website
- (French) Council website
- (English) Cantal at the Open Directory Project
- (French) Cantal
- (French) Tourism site
- (English) Cantal Tourism Guide
- Photographs of Cantal
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