Conques

Conques (in Occitan: Concas) is a former commune in the Aveyron department in Southern France, in the Occitanie region. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Conques-en-Rouergue.[2]

Conques Concas  (Occitan)
Part of Conques-en-Rouergue
A view of Conques
Coat of arms
Location of Conques
Conques Show map of France Conques Show map of Occitanie
Coordinates: 44°36′01″N 2°23′50″E
Country	France
Region	Occitanie
Department	Aveyron
Arrondissement	Rodez
Canton	Lot et Dourdou
Commune	Conques-en-Rouergue
Area ^1	30.51 km^2 (11.78 sq mi)
Population  (2017)[1]	250
• Density	8.2/km^2 (21/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal code	12320
Elevation	221–663 m (725–2,175 ft) (avg. 442 m or 1,450 ft)
^1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km^2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Geography

The village is located at the confluence of the rivers Dourdou de Conques and Ouche. It is built on a hillside and has classic narrow medieval streets. As a result, large vehicles such as buses cannot enter the historic town centre but must park outside. Consequently, most day visitors enter on foot. The town was largely passed by in the nineteenth century, and was saved from oblivion by the efforts of a small number of dedicated people. As a result, the historic core of the town has very little construction dating from between 1800 and 1950, leaving the medieval structures remarkably intact. The roads have been paved, and modern-day utility lines are buried. It is one of the Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (most beautiful villages of France).

The town is situated in a valley. Its name originates from Occitan conca, meaning 'basin', which is derived from Latin concha, meaning 'shell'.[3]

Abbey Church of Sainte-Foy

Main article: Abbey Church of Sainte-Foy

The Sainte-Foy abbey church in Conques

The Abbey Church of Sainte-Foy in Conques was a popular stop for pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago on their way to Santiago de Compostela in what is now Spain. The main draw for medieval pilgrims at Conques were the remains of Saint Faith ("Sainte-Foy"), a martyred young woman from the fourth century.

The original monastery building at Conques was an eighth-century oratory built by monks fleeing the Saracens in Spain.[4] The original chapel was destroyed in the eleventh century in order to facilitate the creation of a much larger church [5] as the arrival of the relics of Sainte-Foy caused the pilgrimage route to shift from Agen to Conques.[6] The second phase of construction, which was completed by the end of the eleventh-century, included the building of the five radiating chapels, the ambulatory with a lower roof, the choir without the gallery and the nave without the galleries.[5] The third phase of construction, which was completed early in the twelfth-century, was inspired by the churches of Toulouse and Santiago Compostela. Like most pilgrimage churches Conques is a basilica plan that has been modified into a cruciform plan.[7] Galleries were added over the aisle and the roof was raised over the transept and choir to allow people to circulate at the gallery level. The western aisle was also added to allow for increased pilgrim traffic.[5] The exterior length of the church is 59 meters. The interior length is 56 meters. the width of each transept is 4 meters. The height of the crossing tower is 26.40 meters tall.[8]

The Abbey Church of Sainte-Foy was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1998, as part of the World Heritage Sites of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France. Its Romanesque architecture, albeit somewhat updated in places, is displayed in periodic self-guided tour opportunities, especially of the upper level, some of which occur at night with live music and appropriately-adjusted light levels.

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1793	1,055	—
1800	1,107	+4.9%
1806	1,234	+11.5%
1821	1,317	+6.7%
1831	1,309	−0.6%
1836	1,360	+3.9%
1841	1,418	+4.3%
1846	1,387	−2.2%
1851	1,117	−19.5%
1856	1,388	+24.3%
1861	1,288	−7.2%
1866	1,301	+1.0%
1872	1,220	−6.2%
1876	1,267	+3.9%
1881	1,282	+1.2%
1886	1,286	+0.3%
1891	1,211	−5.8%
1896	561	−53.7%
1901	993	+77.0%
1906	990	−0.3%
1911	902	−8.9%
1921	755	−16.3%
1926	725	−4.0%
1931	709	−2.2%
1936	686	−3.2%
1946	647	−5.7%
1954	561	−13.3%
1962	529	−5.7%
1968	479	−9.5%
1975	420	−12.3%
1982	404	−3.8%
1990	362	−10.4%
1999	302	−16.6%
2008	281	−7.0%

Media

American author Hannah Green wrote a non-fiction work about Conques and the church entitled Little Saint, based on her visit to the town in 1975.[9]

As well as this, when designing Belle's home town in 'Beauty and the Beast' 2017, the movie's production designer took inspiration from Conques.

Gallery

• 
  Conques hermitage
• 
  Entrance gate to Conques - the Port du Barry
• 
  Conques rooftop vista
• 
  Conques panorama
• 
  Procession on Saint-Foy day in Conques on October 6, 2013

See also

• Communes of the Aveyron department

References

1. Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2017, INSEE
2. Arrêté préfectoral 19 November 2015
3. A Dictionary of Surnames (Oxford University Press) 1988.
4. Brockman, Norbert C. (2011). Encyclopedia of sacred places (2nd ed.). Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. pp. 109. ISBN 978-1-59884-654-6.
5. Stoddard, Whitney S. (1966). Art and Architecture in Medieval France. Boulder, Co.: Westview Press. p. 35.
6. Brockman, Norbert C. (2011). Encyclopedia of sacred places (2nd ed.). Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. pp. 110. ISBN 978-1-59884-654-6.
7. Vernon, Eleanor (1963). "Romanesque Churches of the Pilgrimage Road". Gesta (Pre-Serial Issue): 12–15 [13].
8. Vernon, Eleanor (1963). "Romanesque Churches of the Pilgrimage Road". Gesta (Pre-Serial Issue): 14.
9. William Jay Smith (September 2001). "Golden spark, little saint". The New Criterion. Retrieved 4 October 2015.

External links

• Official Conques web site from the Tourist Office; all the essential and accurate information to visit and to know about Conques