Saint-Orens-Pouy-Petit

Saint-Orens-Pouy-Petit
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Saint-Orens-Pouy-Petit
Location within Midi-Pyrénées region Saint-Orens-Pouy-Petit
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées
Department	Gers
Arrondissement	Condom
Canton	Valence-sur-Baïse
Government
• Mayor (2008–2014)	Michel Meste
Area1	11.31 km2 (4.37 sq mi)
Population (2008)2	142
• Density	13/km2 (33/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	32400 / 32100
Elevation	97–225 m (318–738 ft) (avg. 200 m or 660 ft)
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.

Saint-Orens-Pouy-Petit is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France.

Central to the commune is the classic Gers Pierre Blanche bastide of St Orens, consisting of a walled community on a fierce outcrop of rock, situated 2 km to the east of the D654 between Condom and Saint-Puy. St Orens commands magnificent views to the south, including the Pyrenees in fine weather.

On a facing hill is the hamlet of Hameau de Pouy-Petit.

Saint Orens holds a fine Catholic church and the Château St Orens (sixteenth century). Hameau de Pouy-Petit has the Château gascon de Pouy-Petit (eighteenth century).

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1962	191	—
1968	209	+9.4%
1975	172	−17.7%
1982	207	+20.3%
1990	190	−8.2%
1999	141	−25.8%
2008	142	+0.7%

Sights

• Fortified village walls (St Orens) - St Orens is enclosed by white stone walls (incomplete in sections) dating to the thirteenth century
• Château de St Orens (sixteenth century) - forming the western end of the fortified village, now containing the Salle de Fête (a function and exhibition space) and Mairie (mayor's office). The chateau was given to a lieutenant of the famous French gentleman soldier Blaise de Monluc, based in Saint-Puy.
• Château de Pouy-Petit (eighteenth century)
• Lavoir - a reconstructed washing area below St Orens, used by the villagers prior to modern plumbing
• Library
• Ceramics workshop and gallery
• Brocante
• Rare and vintage button shop
• Tennis court
• Boule patch

File:Saint-Orens-Pouy-Petit vu de l'ouest.jpg

Saint-Orens from the north. The château is to the right.

Arts

Like much of the Gers, St Orens had seen a slow period of decline through the twentieth century, leaving a number of properties in the village empty. An influx of newcomers and returnees in the 1970s and 1980s helped reverse this process. A number of these people were artists and artisans, creating a vibrant artistic community. The Salle de Fête regularly hosts arts exhibitions by local artists, and the nearby Musée d'Art Naïf (Béraut) compliments this picture.

Flora and fauna

Observed around the bastide:

Mammals

Coypu, various deer species, wild boar

Birds

Barn owl, golden oriole, hoopoe, black redstart, kestrel, common buzzard, black kite, greenfinch, rock bunting, pigeon

Butterflies

Orange tip, peacock, southern swallowtail, clouded yellow, small blue, white admiral, red admiral, painted lady, Queen of Spain fritillary

Agriculture

St Orens sits within of a large agricultural region, with common crops including corn, colza, sunflowers and grain. There are also a number of vineyards, producing grapes for wine or distilling.

Local market towns are renowned for their fine fruit and vegetables, particularly Condom, Nérac and Lectoure

Other products from local producers include:

• Armagnac brandy
• Côtes de Gascogne
• Floc de Gascogne
• Foie gras

See also

• History of France
• Gaul
• Roman Gaul
• Francia
• France in the Middle Ages
• Hundred Years' War
• Early Modern France
• French Wars of Religion
• Thirty Years War
• Louis XIV
• French Revolution
• Napoleonic wars
• France in the nineteenth century
• French Third Republic
• France in the twentieth century
• Gers
• Communes of the Gers department
• Armagnac (province)
• Aquitaine
• Gascony
• Vascones

See also

• Communes of the Gers department

References

• INSEE