RODEZ

This article appears in Volume V23, Page 447 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: RHY-RON

RODEZ , a town of southern France,

capital

CAPITAL (i.e. capital stock or fund)
CAPITAL (Lat. caput, head)

of the department of Aveyron, 51 M. N.N.E. of Albi by rail. Pop. (1906) town, 11,076; commune, 15,502. Rodez is situated on the southern border of the Causse of Rodez, on an isolated

plateau

bordered on the E. and S. by the river Aveyron. The cathedral was built between 1277 and 1535. A

great

GREAT

Flamboyant rose-window and a gallery in the same style are the

chief

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

features of the principal facade, which is flanked by two square towers and has no portal. Each transept has a fine

Gothic

GOTHIC

doorway. On the north side of the building rises a tower (15101526) of imposing height (253 ft.). The three upper stages are richly decorated, and the whole is surmounted by a colossal statue of the Virgin. In the cathedral are a fine rood-loft, some good

wood

-carving and the tombs of several bishops. Other interesting buildings are the episcopal palace (17th and 19th centuries), flanked by a massive tower, relic of an older palace; the church of St Amans, of Romanesque architecture, restored in the 18th century; and, among other old houses, the hotel d'Armagnac built in the Renaissance period on the site of the old palace of the

counts

COUNTS

. The ruins of a Roman amphitheatre still exist in Rodez, which is supplied with water by a Roman aqueduct. About 6 m. to the north of Rodez is the chasm of Tindoul de la Vayssiere, leading to a subterranean river issuing in the springs of the picturesque

village

VILLAGE

of Salles-la-Source.
The town is the seat of a bishop, a prefect and a court of assizes, and has tribunals of first instance and commerce, a chamber of commerce, a branch of the Bank of France, a lycee training college for both sexes and an ecclesiastical seminary.
The industries include wool-spinning and the weaving of woollen goods.
Rodez, called Segodunum under the Gauls, and Ruthena under the Romans, was the

capital

CAPITAL (i.e. capital stock or fund)
CAPITAL (Lat. caput, head)

of the Rutheni, a tribe allied to the Arverni, and was afterwards the principal town in the

district

DISTRICT

of Rouergue. In the 4th century it adopted the Christian faith, and St Amans, its first bishop, was elected in 401. During the middle ages contests were rife between the bishops, who held the temporal power in the " cite," and the

counts

COUNTS

in the " bourg." The Albigenses were defeated near Rodez in 121o. The countship of Rodez, detached from that of Rouergue at the end of the 11th century, belonged first to the viscounts of Carlat, and from the beginning of the 14th century to the counts of Armagnac. From 136o to 1368 the English held the town. After the confiscation of the estates of the Armagnacs in 1475 the countship passed to the dukes of Alen9on and then to the D'Albrets.

Henry

IV. finally annexed it to the crown of France.

End of Article: RODEZ

If you wish, you can link directly to this article.

<a href="http://jcsm.org/StudyCenter/Encyclopedia/RHY_RON/RODEZ.html">
RODEZ
</a>

(Previous)
RODERICK

(Next)
RODGERS, JOHN (17711838)

JCSM was founded in 1997 and exists to help the community and bring people into a life-changing and productive relationship with Jesus Christ. JCSM offers over 200,000 free web pages, including its weekly inspirational emails that were sent continuously for over a decade.

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries
P.O. Box 9297
San Diego, CA 92169
1-888-887-0417 or Email