Saint-Avit-Sénieur
| Saint-Avit-Sénieur | |
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The church
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 Saint-Avit-Sénieur
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Location within Nouvelle-Aquitaine region
Saint-Avit-Sénieur
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| Coordinates: 44°46′32″N 0°49′02″E / 44.7756°N 0.8172°ECoordinates: 44°46′32″N 0°49′02″E / 44.7756°N 0.8172°E | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Nouvelle-Aquitaine |
| Department | Dordogne |
| Arrondissement | Bergerac |
| Canton | Lalinde |
| Intercommunality | Pays Beaumontois |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2008–2014) | Alain Delayre |
| Area1 | 23.4 km2 (9.0 sq mi) |
| Population (2008)2 | 440 |
| • Density | 19/km2 (49/sq mi) |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) |
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 24379 /24440 |
| Elevation | 61–195 m (200–640 ft) (avg. 171 m or 561 ft) |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
Saint-Avit-Sénieur is a commune in the Dordogne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.
The most notable feature of the village is a massive church from the end of the 11th and 12th century. Next to the church, an abbey has been erected to honour the hermit Avitus, who died in 570. Avitus gave his name to the abbey and the village.
The abbey used to house canons, disciples of Augustine of Hippo. It is now mostly in ruins.
The size of the church (51 × 23 meters) can be explained by the fame of the village on the Way of St. James: one of the paths starting from Vézelay passes through this place.
The village is located on a plateau near the Couze Valley. In the past, the place was called "Mount Dauriac".
The site of Combe-Capelle has been excavated near the Couze Valley, next to the border with the commune of Montferrand-du-Périgord. The place was occupied during the Upper Paleolithic period.
According to an hagiography, Avitus, a young aristocrat from Lanquais, was enlisted against his will in the Visigoth army (under Alaric II) against the Frank army of Clovis. The army of Clovis was trying to conquer the South-West of France at this time.
At the Battle of Vouillé in 507, Avitus, taken prisoner by the Franks, converted to Christianity. When freed, he had a dream that he should return to his homeland, and walk in the local woods until he received a sign. He rested in a cave next to a spring, looking out towards a hill, the Mount Dauriac (the site of the present village), where a pagan temple had been built. He recited a prayer and the pagan temple collapsed. Avitus then became a thaumaturge and healer. At his death in 570, he was celebrated like a saint. Monks came to settle near the cave, where he had built an oratory.
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Wikipedia