Beaumont-de-Lomagne

History

Beaumont-de-Lomagne, bastide, was founded in 1276 following the act of coregency between the abbey of Grandselve and King Philip III of France – the King was represented by his seneschal for the former County of Toulouse, Eustache de Beaumarchais. In 1278 the town was granted a very liberal charter of laws, by the standards of the period, defining the rights and duties of its inhabitants. In 1280, work commenced on a large church; its flat apse shows the influence of Cîteaux. The bell-tower, was made in the fifteenth century and resembles that of Saint-Sernin in Toulouse. Construction finished around 1430 and the Bishop of Montauban, driven out of his city by the English, made it his episcopal seat until 1432. The market hall, in the centre of the town square, was designed for the markets that took place every Saturday. The fourteenth century marked the beginning of the Hundred Years' War. Taken by the English in 1345, Beaumont was recaptured in 1350 but continued to be plundered by "Great Companies" and experienced civil war due to the opposition of two military chiefs: Count of Foix and John I, Count of Armagnac. The century ended with an epidemic of the plague which killed 500 inhabitants. By the sixteenth century, Beaumont, a catholic town, was surrounded by three protestant towns: Montauban, Mas-Grenier and Mauvezin. In 1577, Henri III sold Beaumont to Henri III of Navarre (future Henri IV), leader of the Protestants and whose troops came to massacre a hundred Beaumontois. In December 1580, 600 mercenaries of Montauban demobilized and took Beaumont. They remained for two months, and caused much damage to the town. When peace returned, many Beaumontois adopted the policy of religious tolerance as advocated by Henri IV. The eminent mathematician Pierre de…

Geography

The river Gimone runs through the town.

Most-observed species

• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  729
• Carrion Crow

  Corvus corone Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  674
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  612
• European Robin

  Erithacus rubecula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  607
• Common Wood-Pigeon

  Columba palumbus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  591
• Common Buzzard

  Buteo buteo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  560
• Common Chaffinch

  Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  536
• Black-shouldered Kite

  Elanus caeruleus (Desfontaines, 1789) · Aves
  432

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2002-06-12
  4 km SSW of Le Sequestre, France
• M 3.3 — 2001-09-21
  4 km NNE of Portet-sur-Garonne, France