Saint-Blancard (French pronunciation: [sɛ̃ blɑ̃kaʁ]; Gascon: Sent Blancat) is a commune in the Gers department in the Occitanie region in southwestern France.

Saint-Blancard
The main road in the village
The main road in the village
Location of Saint-Blancard
Map
Saint-Blancard is located in France
Saint-Blancard
Saint-Blancard
Saint-Blancard is located in Occitanie
Saint-Blancard
Saint-Blancard
Coordinates: 43°20′42″N 0°38′51″E / 43.345°N 0.6475°E / 43.345; 0.6475
CountryFrance
RegionOccitania
DepartmentGers
ArrondissementMirande
CantonAstarac-Gimone
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2026) Christine Huppert[1]
Area
1
14.87 km2 (5.74 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[2]
307
 • Density21/km2 (53/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
32365 /32140
Elevation227–357 m (745–1,171 ft)
(avg. 356 m or 1,168 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Geography

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Localisation

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Saint-Blancard is located on the ridge between the valley of the Gimone in the east and the valley of the Arrats in the west . The D228 crosses the D576 in the village. Auch is at 40 km, Toulouse at 80 km and Tarbes at 60 km from Saint-Blancard.

 
Saint-Blancard and its surrounding communes

Hydrography

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The Arrats runs in the west of the commune.

South of the village is a small lake for the farmers.

There is a privately owned watermill. To the southeast lies a 6 km long reservoir with a surface area of 263 hectares, Lac de la Gimone. The lake forms the border between Gers and Haute-Garonne. It was created by the placement of a dam on the river Gimone. The commune has a system of streams and small lakes that serve the agriculture.

 
Small lake near the village.

History

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Politics

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The office of nine communes united under the name Les Hautes Vallees,[3] is located in the village.

Population

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Historical population
YearPop.±%
1962273—    
1968255−6.6%
1975217−14.9%
1982229+5.5%
1990205−10.5%
1999257+25.4%
2008334+30.0%

The inhabitants are called Saint Blancardais.

Services

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With a small shop, the village is still self-supporting. At the store is a gas depot. There is a hairdresser and a post office in Saint-Blancard. The municipality encourages the middle class by counting low rents for buildings. In a former convent school is now a hotel / pub / restaurant next to the town hall. There is a school. There are Bed & Breakfast and there are cottages. There is a football field. In the village is radio Coteaux, 97.7 and 104.5 FM located . At the lake is a nautical center. There is a swimming facility. There is a field for motorized paragliding.

The village has a rehabilitation center. There are also homes for rehabilitation treatment.

Sites of interest

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The church and the castle
 
Inside the church.
 
Remains of the windmill.

The most striking building in town is the castle. The 15th-century church Saint-Pancrare is built next to the castle. At the junktion west of the castle is a monument to a former Count Armand who was also mayor of the village. In a pasture north of the castle stand on a hill, the remains of the windmill (moulin à vent fr) from Saint-Blancard.[4] That place is called Chez Baptiste. In front of the castle is a monument to the fallen, a cross and a statue of Mary. Between these statues is a boules alley with lights located.

In the middle of the village stands a cross aging from 1895 in memory of the famille (family) Furgatte. In the east of the village stands a twelve-foot-high wooden cross back from the seventeenth century.

Notable people

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In the village is the Château de Saint-Blancard (Castle of Saint-Blancard). Among the barons and marquesses that lived in the castle were:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
  2. ^ "Populations légales 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
  3. ^ Les Hautes Vallées
  4. ^ "Moulins à vent de la région Midi Pyrénées". www.moulins-a-vent.net. Archived from the original on 12 December 2004.