Landscape Change Across the Border La Jonquera – Le Perthus – Le Boulou
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Border Landscapes across Europe Geographical Landscape Research Landscape change across the border La Jonquera – Le Perthus – Le Boulou Katarzyna Bromka Karolina Kozak Izabela Krzewina Miquel Saludas Sebastian Rossi Mariana Verdonen Girona, 2013 Contents 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 2 2. Historical background ....................................................................................................... 3 2.1 La Jonquera ............................................................................................................... 4 2.2 Le Pertús ................................................................................................................... 5 2.3 Le Boulou.................................................................................................................. 5 3. Theoretical background ..................................................................................................... 6 4. Data and Methods ............................................................................................................. 7 4.1 Data........................................................................................................................... 7 4.2 Darby´s cross-section method .................................................................................... 8 5. Results .............................................................................................................................. 9 5.1 Urban changing ......................................................................................................... 9 5.2 Land use .................................................................................................................. 17 6. Conclusions .................................................................................................................... 22 References .............................................................................................................................. 23 1 1. Introduction This work is the result of field exercise “Border Landscapes across Europe” which took place in Catalonia from 5th to 18th May 2013. It is an international project which brings together students of the University of Adam Mickiewicz in Poznan (Poland), Universitat de Girona (Catalonia, Spain) and University of Eastern Finland. The idea of this study was to acquaint students with the difficulties of the Catalan- French border. In these classes, the students held a series of meetings about landscapes in the area. They participated in conferences and discussions and they had the opportunity to conduct field observations thanks to excursions through the region. The subject of our report is about the landscape changes across the Catalan-French border. Studies were based on information collected in the Catalan town of La Jonquera (Fig. 1) and in the Catalan-French neighborhood of Le Perthus (Fig. 2.), which has always been an important way through the Pyrenees. The main subject in this work is land use of the border area. We want to define the landscape changes in the above mentioned area. How does the land use change across the border and why? How has it changed during the years? Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain with the official status of a nationality. There is on the north-east of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. It covers an area of 32 107 km² and has an official population of 7 565 603 people (2012). La Jonquera is a municipality of l´Alt Emporda in Catalonia. It is situated just by the border, north of the region. Fig. 1. Location of La Jonquera in Spain. (L&V Location-et-Vacances 2013) 2 Vallespir is a historical Catalan region of Northern Catalonia, part of the French Département of Pyrénées-Orientales. The capital of the region is Ceret, and it borders with Conflent, Rosselló, Alt Empordà, Garrotxa and Ripollès. Le Perthus is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France, the same like Le Boulou (Fig. 3.) which situated 12 km from the Spanish border. Fig. 2. Location of Le Perthus in France. (L&V Location-et-Vacances 2013) Fig. 3. Location of Le Boulou in France. (L&V Location-et-Vacances 2013) 2. Historical background The current land use is a heritage of ancient practices that modified the environment. According to this, it is important to identify the evolution of the settlements of this border zone as “hot spots” of intensive changes along the years. 3 2.1 La Jonquera The location of the village has played an important role as crossing zone. The first archeological remains date from mid Neolithic era (around 3500 to 2700 bC.) and are composed for menhir and dolmens. The presence of the romans in this area is known by the pass of the most important road that connected Rome with Iberia, the Via Domicia converted more ahead into "Via Augusta" in the Panissars mountain pass. (Ajuntament de La Jonquera 2013, A) The current environment of La Jonquera has appeared on the middle age as an extremely scattered settlement composed for castles and defense towers and for the isolated peasant’s houses. Was in the low middle age when emerged the concentrated capital, which was in the middle of a fertile plain and therefore in a more agricultural potential land than other forest territories. La Jonquera during these times had appeared as a modest village, consisting on a church, perhaps one or two hotels and various farm houses. All buildings were located around the church and all over the road. (Ajuntament de La Jonquera 2013, A) In 1453 the chartae populationis was conceded to La Jonquera. At that time the village comprised two distinct planning units: The fortress called La Força and a neighborhood outside the walls, but stuck to the fortress. (Ajuntament de La Jonquera 2013, A) One of the most important events for la Jonquera was the Peace of the Pyrenees (1659), signed between the French monarchy and the Spanish monarchy. It stipulated the transfer of Roussillon to France and designates a border that will follow the southern ridge of the Pyrenees turning La Jonquera in a border town. (Ajuntament de La Jonquera 2013, A) After this moment, La Jonquera has entered in a long period of progress and prosperity. This improvement was influenced not only by the increase in border traffic and trade but especially for a more intense exploitation of the term resources, especially the forest (wood and cork) or the badlands to plant vines or cork oaks (Quercus suber). The rise of the local economy causes an increase in population; this supposed an increase of the limits of the village. (Ajuntament de La Jonquera 2013, A) 4 2.2 Le Pertús Le Perthus is a neighbourhood of La Jonquera located in a mountain pass (Coll del Pertús) and permit to cross from one side to the other of Pyrénées. This strategic location has always been coveted. (Ajuntament de La Jonquera 2013, B) The first who understood the importance were the Romans and after the fall of Rome and the recovery of Septimania by the Visigoths, the territory of Le Perthus continued his role in supervision of the Pyrenees. The central point of the defensive tower was Ultrera but Le Perthus had his military buildings, now ruined. Then the Saracens conquered Spain and the South of France before they were arrested in Poitiers by the Franks who drove them beyond the Pyrenees. These newly acquired territories were given to pioneers from northern France to settle in the South. (Pyrenees Catalanes 2013) Le Perthus was still controlled militarily and a watchtower on the hill above the city was built in the Middle Ages. This tower was surrounded in the seventeenth century for a real strong Bellegarde Castle. The village of El Pertús have taken benefit for the presence of a garrison which had significantly increased the population. The municipality of Le Perthus was formed in 1836 through the merger of three villages: Le Perthus, Les Cluses and Albère. Unfortunately this merger was not considered valid, and the three villages resumed their independence in 1948. The current Le Perthus was designed officially in 1851. Thereafter Le Perthus has developed slowly, it was quite a small farming village, who lived much of the passage to Spain because of it position. (Pyrenees Catalanes 2013) Nowadays the city is divided into two distinct parts: the French and the Spanish. It has a commercial important role due to the differences between prices in Spain (lower) than France (higher). It present an important singularity, the road divides the two entities in the southern part, in the northern part both parts are French. (Pyrenees Catalanes 2013) 2.3 Le Boulou Since the ancient times, Le Boulou has played an important role as a crossroad point. Located on the way north-south, the village was a permanent testimony of the 5 exchanges across the border and the pass of big migrations of citizens and armies crossing the Pyrenees. (Mairie du Boulou 2010) There we can find marks left by prehistorically populations, the Via Domicia (118 aC), thediscover of the thermal fountains in the middle age. The history of le Boulou is dynamic in constant change according to the new flows between the south and the north. (Mairie du Boulou 2010) The most important event located in Le Boulou was the Battle of Le Boulou (1 may 1794). It was one of the battles of the Big War (1793-1795) between Spain and France for the possession of the Rousillon. (Mairie du Boulou