Gap, Hautes-Alpes
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Gap | |
|---|---|
 Jean Marcellin Square | |
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Gap  | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur |
| Department | Hautes-Alpes |
| Arrondissement | Gap |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2008–2014) | Roger Didier |
| Area 1 | 110.43 km2 (42.64 sq mi) |
| Population (2009) | 41,170 |
| • Density | 370/km2 (970/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Gapençais |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 05061 /05000 |
| Elevation | 625–2,360 m (2,051–7,743 ft) (avg. 745 m or 2,444 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Gap (French: [ɡap]; Occitan: Gap) is a commune in south-eastern France, the capital and largest settlement of the Hautes-Alpes department. At 750m above sea level, it is France's highest prefecture (departmental capital). Together with other Alpine towns Gap engages in the Alpine Town of the Year Association for the implementation of the Alpine Convention to achieve sustainable development in the Alpine Arc. Gap was awarded Alpine Town of the Year 2002.
Geography
An Alpine crossroads at the intersection of D994 and the Route nationale 85 or Route Napoléon, Gap lies 745 metres (2,400 ft) above sea level along the right bank of the fr (close to where it joins the Durance River). The region around Gap is known as fr.
History
Originally founded by the Gauls, the Roman emperor Augustus seized the town in 14 BC and renamed it Vapincum. Eight years later, a Roman road was started, which linked the city to what is now Valencia, Spain. Vapincum grew as a transportation hub and was fortified by later Roman Emperors to protect it against Barbarians. From 28 December 986, the Bishop of Gap had sovereignty over the city due to concerns about future Muslim invasions, and held that power until Revolutionary reforms in 1801 despite Gap being annexed by the French crown in 1512.[1]
When the former royal province of Dauphiné was re-organised by the French Revolutionary government in 1790, Gap was made prefecture of the new Hautes-Alpes department, which it remains to this day.[1]
Napoleon I left Elba in February 1815 and had reached Gap on 15 March with 40 horsemen and 10 grenadiers where he had thousands of copies of his Proclamations printed. The whole population of the city accompanied Napoleon when he left Gap.
Gap ran a bid to host the 2018 Winter Olympics,[2] but lost out as France's candidate to nearby Annecy. The games were eventually awarded to Pyeongchang in South Korea.[3]
People
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1793 | 6,014 | — |
| 1800 | 8,050 | +33.9% |
| 1806 | 8,891 | +10.4% |
| 1821 | 6,714 | −24.5% |
| 1831 | 7,215 | +7.5% |
| 1836 | 7,854 | +8.9% |
| 1841 | 8,599 | +9.5% |
| 1846 | 8,724 | +1.5% |
| 1851 | 8,797 | +0.8% |
| 1856 | 8,912 | +1.3% |
| 1861 | 8,219 | −7.8% |
| 1866 | 8,165 | −0.7% |
| 1872 | 8,927 | +9.3% |
| 1876 | 9,294 | +4.1% |
| 1881 | 10,765 | +15.8% |
| 1886 | 11,621 | +8.0% |
| 1891 | 10,478 | −9.8% |
| 1896 | 11,376 | +8.6% |
| 1901 | 11,018 | −3.1% |
| 1906 | 10,823 | −1.8% |
| 1911 | 10,647 | −1.6% |
| 1921 | 9,859 | −7.4% |
| 1926 | 10,660 | +8.1% |
| 1931 | 11,717 | +9.9% |
| 1936 | 13,600 | +16.1% |
| 1946 | 16,371 | +20.4% |
| 1954 | 17,317 | +5.8% |
| 1962 | 20,478 | +18.3% |
| 1968 | 23,994 | +17.2% |
| 1975 | 28,233 | +17.7% |
| 1982 | 30,676 | +8.7% |
| 1990 | 33,444 | +9.0% |
| 1999 | 36,269 | +8.4% |
| 2008 | 38,584 | +6.4% |
| 41,170 | — |
- Jean-Christophe Lafaille, mountaineer
- Christian Audigier, designer
- Sébastien Ogier, rally driver
- William Farel (1489-1565), early Protestant and translator of the Bible to French and Occitan
Sights
See also
References
- ^ a b "Gap, Briançon, Hautes Alpes (Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur) - Die, Drôme (Rhône-Alpes)". LaRocheUSA.org. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ "gap-2018.fr". gap-2018.fr. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ "BBC Sport - Winter Sports - Pyeongchang will host the 2018 Winter Olympics". BBC News. 6 July 2011. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- INSEE
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty|title=(help)- Gallia Christiana (Nova, 1715), I, 452–473, Instrumenta, 86–89, (Nova, 1725), III, 1051–1107; Instrumenta, 177–188, 205–8;
- fr, Gallia christiana Novissima (Montbeliard, 1899), I,
- fr, Histoire hagiologique du diocese de Gap (Gap, 1852);
- fr, France Pontificale (Paris, 1868);
- Gaillaud, Histoire de Notre Dame d'Embrun (Gap, 1862);
- fr, Sigillographie du diocese de Gap (Grenoble, 1870);
- Joseph Roman, Tableau historique du département des Hautes-Alpes (Paris, 1889–91);
- Ulysse Chevalier, Topo-bibl., pp. 988, 1266.
External links
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