Castelsarrasin (; ) is a commune in the

Tarn-et-Garonne Tarn-et-Garonne (; ) is a Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania Regions of France, region in Southern France. It is traversed by the rivers Tarn (river), Tarn and Garonne, from which it takes its n ...

department in 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 France. The inhabitants are called ''Castelsarrasinois''. It is the second most populous commune in Tarn-et-Garonne after

Montauban Montauban (, ; ) is a commune in the southern French department of Tarn-et-Garonne. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, and the sixth most populated of Oc ...

. It is served by Castelsarrasin station on the Bordeaux-Toulouse line.

History

The first certain evidence of the town dates from 961. The name, ''Castel Sarracenum'', does not indicate that the castle was built in the

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Rom ...

era, but instead derives from ''Cerrucinum''. The early history of the city is marked by wars; against the English until the end of the 12th century, then the

Albigensian Crusade The Albigensian Crusade (), also known as the Cathar Crusade (1209–1229), was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, what is now southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted pri ...

during the first part of the 13th century, and then the Shepherd's Crusade of 1320 that resulted in the deaths of many Jews in the city. The region was much affected by the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

, and again, during the wars of religion of the 16th century, the city's largely Catholic population was in frequent conflict with the generally Protestant surrounding region. The region is calmer during the following centuries, up to the time of the French Revolution. Castelsarrasin was the finish of Stage 17 in the

2007 Tour de France The 2007 Tour de France the 94th running of Tour de France, the race, took place from 7 to 29 July. The Tour began with a prologue in London, and ended with the traditional finish in Paris. Along the way, the route also passed through Belgium and ...

Population

Personalities

Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac Antoine de la Mothe, sieur de Cadillac (, ; March 5, 1658October 16, 1730), born Antoine Laumet, was a French explorer and adventurer in New France, which stretched from Eastern Canada to Louisiana on the Gulf of Mexico. He rose from a modest beg ...

, explorer and mayor, died in 1730. * Charles de Mazade, born in 1820. * Pierre Perret, singer born on 9 July 1934. * Caroline Costa, singer born in 1996

Monuments

* Église Saint-Sauveur, dating from the 13th century.

Administration

Castelsarrasin is the sub-prefecture of the department. Bernard Dagen, pharmacist by profession, was mayor between 1989 and 2014.

References

External links

Castelsarrasin official site

Castelsarrasin non official site since 2001
(in French) Communes of Tarn-et-Garonne Subprefectures in France Languedoc {{TarnGaronne-geo-stub