Aigne (; ) is a commune in the

Hérault Hérault (; , ) is a departments of France, department of the Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Southern France. Named after the Hérault (river), Hérault River, its Prefectures in France, prefecture is M ...

department in the Occitanie

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

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

Aigne is located some 25 km north-west of

Narbonne Narbonne ( , , ; ; ; Late Latin:) is a commune in Southern France in the Occitanie region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. It is located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and was ...

and 40 km north-east of

Carcassonne Carcassonne is a French defensive wall, fortified city in the Departments of France, department of Aude, Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. It is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the department. ...

. The commune can be accessed by the D910 road from Beaufort in the south-west continuing through the commune and the village to Aigues-Vives in the north-east. The D177 minor road also comes from Azillanet in the west to the village then continues north to join the D907 at the northern border of the commune. The south-eastern border of the commune is also the border between the Herault and

Aude Aude ( ; ) is a Departments of France, department in Southern France, located in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region and named after the river Aude (river), Aude. The departmental council also calls it " ...

departments. Most of the commune is undulating farmland with large areas of forest especially towards the west.Google Maps
/ref> Numerous streams rise in the commune and flow towards the south-west. The Ruisseau d'Embusque forms a large part of the south-eastern border.

History

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

presence has been found in Mouchas, Mouleyres and Embusco. *Large Roman Villas have been found at: Saint-Michel, La Prade, Les Mouleyres, Sainte-Leocadie, and Les Clauses *Slate Tombs have been found at: Saints-Abdon-et-Sennen, La Prade, Sainte-Leocadie, Le Caïrou, Sainte-Luchaire, and Les Mouleyres. The ''Treil'' of Pardailhan were the last noble Aigne family: they were also Barons of Pardailhan and Lords of La Caunette.

Heraldry

Administration

List of successive mayors of Aigne

Population

The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Aignois'' or ''Aignoises'' in French.

Economy

Aigne has a cooperative winery located at the entrance of the village. This winery has been absorbed by the cellar of Azillanet and no longer makes wine.

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

*L'Escargot (The Snail) is a unique architectural building dating from the 11th century. This is a spiral of houses centred on the church square which is only accessible by a private porch. It was once flanked by a

drawbridge A drawbridge or draw-bridge is a type of moveable bridge typically at the entrance to a castle or tower surrounded by a moat. In some forms of English, including American English, the word ''drawbridge'' commonly refers to all types of moveable b ...

and defended by a

portcullis A portcullis () is a heavy, vertically closing gate typically found in medieval fortifications. It consists of a latticed Grille (architecture), grille made of wood and/or metal, which slides down grooves inset within each jamb of the gateway. ...

. It is likely that this architecture was the result of a strategic choice of defense.

Religious heritage

The Church contains two items which are registered as historical objects: *An

Altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

and

Tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

(18th century) *A Bronze bell (1616)Ministry of Culture, Palissy

Tourism

There are several sites to visit with a restaurant on the town square and craft workshops.

References

External links

Aigne on the old IGN website

Aigne on the Official website of Pays Haut Languedoc et Vignobles

Aigne on Géoportail
National Geographic Institute (IGN) website
''Aigne'' on the 1750 Cassini Map
{{authority control Communes of Hérault