Astet () is a commune in the

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (; AURA) or ; or ; . is a Regions of France, region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Auvergne and Rhône-Alpes. The new region came into e ...

region of southern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Geography

Astet is located some 30 km west by north-west of

Aubenas Aubenas (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the southern part of the Ardèche Departments of France, department in Southern France. It is the seat of several government offices. The mountainous and rugged countryside is popular for vacation ...

and 15 km east by south-east of

Langogne Langogne (; ) is a commune in the Lozère department in southern France. Located on the antique Regordane way, the Paris–Nimes railway line and the road RN 88 (Lyon–Toulouse), the city has long been a commercial crossroad between the Auve ...

. Access to the commune is by

Route nationale A ''route nationale'', or simply ''nationale'', is a class of trunk road in France. They are important roads of national significance which cross broad portions of the French territory, in contrast to departmental or communal roads which serve mo ...

N102 from

Lanarce Lanarce (; ) is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. Geography The village of Lanarce, situated along a busy road between Montélimar to Le Puy-en-Velay demonstrates the difficulty of Ardeche mountain life. Built more than ...

in the north-west passing through the north of the commune and continuing over the Col de la Chavade in the centre of the commune then south-east to Mayres. The N102 is a heavily used road between the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

Valley and the Massif Central. There is also the D239 coming from

Saint-Cirgues-en-Montagne Saint-Cirgues-en-Montagne (; ) is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardèche department The following is a list of the 335 communes of the Ardèche department of France. T ...

in the north-east passing through the centre of the commune, crossing the N102 at the Col de la Chavade and continuing south to join the D19. The village is located in the east of the commune and is reached by a short but tortuous road from the N102. Apart from the village there is also the hamlet of Sedassier to the south-east. The commune covers 3,445 hectares with the highest point at ''Les Valadous'' at 1,548m.Google Maps
/ref> The

Ardèche Ardèche (; , ; ) is a Departments of France, department in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Southeastern France. It is named after the river Ardèche (river), Ardèche and had a population of 328,278 as of 2019.Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

Pont-Saint-Esprit Pont-Saint-Esprit (, literally "Holy Spirit Bridge"; ) is a commune in the Gard département in southern France. It is situated on the river Rhône and is the site of a historical crossing, hence its name. The Ardèche flows into the Rhône, jus ...

in Astet. The Espezonnette rises in the south of the commune with many tributaries: the Ruisseau de la Ferme, the Ruisseau du Gouffre, the Ruisseau de Montgros, and the Ruisseau de l'Ane. It flows north forming a small part of the northern border before continuing to join the

Allier Allier ( , , ; ) is a Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region that borders Cher (department), Cher to the west, Nièvre to the north, Saône-et-Loire and Loire (department), Loire to the east, Pu ...

just south of the Langogne-Lesperon Aerodrome.

Neighbouring communes and villages

History

First established as a parish in 1770, Astet became a commune in 1907 by separating from the large commune of Mayres. Astet had over 500 inhabitants in 1911 but this has decreased to 41 in 2010. The

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

resulted in a reduction in population then the

desertification Desertification is a type of gradual land degradation of Soil fertility, fertile land into arid desert due to a combination of natural processes and human activities. The immediate cause of desertification is the loss of most vegetation. This i ...

of the land in the 1950s.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

Demography

The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Asténiens'' or ''Asténiennes'' in French.Le nom des habitants du 07 - Ardèche
habitants.fr

Sites and monuments

*Les Valadous the highest point in the ''Serre de la Croix de Bauzon'' at 1,548m. *Col de la Chavade *Col du Pendu *La Chavade-Bel-Air Ski Resort *A Church from the 19th century *The source of the

Ardèche Ardèche (; , ; ) is a Departments of France, department in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Southeastern France. It is named after the river Ardèche (river), Ardèche and had a population of 328,278 as of 2019.Wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that wind power, converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. , hundreds of thousands of list of most powerful wind turbines, large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, were generating over ...

s operated by

Électricité de France Électricité de France SA (; ), commonly known as EDF, is a French multinational corporation, multinational electric utility company owned by the government of France. Headquartered in Paris, with €139.7 billion in sales in 2023, EDF ope ...

The GR7 path passes through the centre of the commune parallel with the D239.Géoportail

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...