Villefranche-de-Conflent
| Villefranche-de-Conflent Vilafranca de Conflent |
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A view of Villefranche from Fort Liberia
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 Villefranche-de-Conflent
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Location within Languedoc-Roussillon region
Villefranche-de-Conflent
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| Coordinates: 42°35′17″N 2°22′07″E / 42.5881°N 2.3686°ECoordinates: 42°35′17″N 2°22′07″E / 42.5881°N 2.3686°E | ||
| Country | France | |
| Region | Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées | |
| Department | Pyrénées-Orientales | |
| Arrondissement | Prades | |
| Canton | Prades | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor (2001–2008) | François Galte | |
| Area1 | 4.46 km2 (1.72 sq mi) | |
| Population (2006)2 | 244 | |
| • Density | 55/km2 (140/sq mi) | |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
| INSEE/Postal code | 66223 / 66500 | |
| Elevation | 390–1,395 m (1,280–4,577 ft) (avg. 432 m or 1,417 ft) |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. |
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Villefranche-de-Conflent (Catalan: Vilafranca de Conflent) is historically a town in the Conflent region of Catalonia, and now a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.
Contents
Geography[edit]
Locality[edit]
Villefranche-de-Conflent is located in the canton of Prades and in the arrondissement of Prades.
The town's confined site, at about 440 m above sea level, is relatively level ground surrounded by
- the northeast-flowing river Têt (on the town's west and north),
- the Cady, which flows north to empty into the Têt (on the east), and
- a peak (at nearly 800 m), less than 800 m away (on the south).[1]
Transport[edit]
- Roads
The N116 from Perpignan on the Mediterranean passes, as a two-lane highway, between the southern town wall and an embankment cut into the high ground to the south;[1] this route continues west into the adjacent Cerdagne region.
- Train
The town's train station starts and ends the route of the scenic Yellow train.
History[edit]
The original town dates from 1098, and was fortified because of its strategic position in lands that changed hands between French and Spanish occupation.
- In 1374, Villefranche resisted the siege of Jaume III the son of last king of Majorca.
- In July 1654, the French captured the city after eight days, and the troops of Louis XIV took Puigcerda from the Spaniards.
- The town was part of the program of construction and improvement of outlying French defenses led by through 1707 by Marshal Vauban, and as such is listed as a World Heritage Site.
The defensive walls of the town remain.
Population[edit]
See also[edit]
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
- Ayats, Alain, "Les fortifications de Vauban", Trabucaire, 2005, ISBN 2-84974-026-8
- INSEE commune file
External links[edit]
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