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This article may be expanded with text translated from the corresponding article in the French Wikipedia. (December 2009)
Click [show] on the right to read important instructions before translating.
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Gap |
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| Jean Marcellin Square | |
 Gap
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Location within Provence-A.-C.d'A. region
Gap
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| Administration | |
|---|---|
| Country | France |
| Region | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur |
| Department | Hautes-Alpes |
| Arrondissement | Gap |
| Mayor | Roger Didier (2008–2014) |
| Statistics | |
| Elevation | 625–2,360 m (2,051–7,740 ft) (avg. 745 m or 2,444 ft) |
| Land area1 | 110.43 km2 (42.64 sq mi) |
| Population2 | 41,170 (2009) |
| - Density | 373 /km2 (970 /sq mi) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 05061/ 05000 |
| 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. | |
Coordinates: 44°33′34″N 6°04′43″E / 44.5594°N 6.0786°E
Gap (French: [gap] ; Occitan: Gap) is a commune in southeastern France, the capital and largest settlement of the Hautes-Alpes department. At 750m above sea level, it is France's highest prefecture (departmental capital).
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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 Luye River (fr) (close to where it joins the Durance River). The region around Gap is known as Gapençais (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.2
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,3 but lost out as France's candidate to nearby Annecy. The games were eventually awarded to Pyeongchang in South Korea.4
Population
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| 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% |
People
- 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
- ^ "Gap, Briançon, Hautes Alpes (Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur) - Die, Drôme (Rhône-Alpes)". LaRocheUSA.org. Retrieved 2013-04-17.
- ^ "Gap, Briançon, Hautes Alpes (Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur) - Die, Drôme (Rhône-Alpes)". LaRocheUSA.org. Retrieved 2013-04-17.
- ^ "gap-2018.fr". gap-2018.fr. Retrieved 2013-04-17.
- ^ "BBC Sport - Winter Sports - Pyeongchang will host the 2018 Winter Olympics". BBC News. 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2013-04-17.
- INSEE
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. Robert Appleton Company.- Gallia Christiana (Nova, 1715), I, 452–473, Instrumenta, 86–89, (Nova, 1725), III, 1051–1107; Instrumenta, 177–188, 205–8;
- Joseph Hyacinthe Albanès (fr), Gallia christiana Novissima (Montbeliard, 1899), I,
- Jean-Irénée Depéry (fr), Histoire hagiologique du diocese de Gap (Gap, 1852);
- Honoré Fisquet (fr), France Pontificale (Paris, 1868);
- Gaillaud, Histoire de Notre Dame d'Embrun (Gap, 1862);
- Joseph Roman (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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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Gap |
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