Mazamet

Mazamet (French pronunciation: [mazamet]; Languedocien: Masamet) is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France.

Mazamet
Commune
Panorama of Mazamet
Coat of arms
Location of Mazamet
Mazamet Show map of France Mazamet Show map of Occitanie
Coordinates: 43°29′34″N 2°22′27″E
Country	France
Region	Occitania
Department	Tarn
Arrondissement	Castres
Canton	Mazamet-1 and Mazamet-2 Vallée du Thoré
Intercommunality	CA Castres Mazamet
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Olivier Fabre[1]
Area 1	72.08 km2 (27.83 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	10,123
• Density	140/km2 (360/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	81163 /81200
Elevation	213–1,176 m (699–3,858 ft) (avg. 241 m or 791 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

It is the second-largest component of the Castres-Mazamet metropolitan area.

Geography

Mazamet is situated on the northern slope of the Montagne Noire and on the Arnette, a small tributary of the Thoré, which forms the commune's northern border.

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	16,171	—
1975	14,440	−1.60%
1982	12,840	−1.66%
1990	11,481	−1.39%
1999	10,544	−0.94%
2007	10,055	−0.59%
2012	10,093	+0.08%
2017	10,013	−0.16%
Source: INSEE[3]

Economy

The town made its wealth during the 18th and 19th centuries, when it was the world center of the wool industry. At its height, the town imported more than 100,000 tonnes of wool annually from the Southern Hemisphere. After processing, numerous establishments were involved in wool-spinning and in the manufacture of leather goods, gloves, blankets, hosiery and clothing for the troops. Mazamet was the biggest center of the wool pulling industry in Europe.^[4][5] In 1906, 95% of French workers in the industry were employed in Tarn.^[6][7] While the vast majority of Mazamet's wool industry ended in the early 1990s, the town still has a residual high-end leather industry with leather being purchased by a number of Paris & London fashion houses.^{[citation needed]}

Today, Mazamet is known for tourism, thanks to its natural setting at the foothills of the Montagne Noire mountain range and being close to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Albi, Carcassonne and the Canal du Midi.^{[citation needed]}

The town has a 65 km (40 mi) cycle path, plus numerous other cycling + walking routes.^{[citation needed]}

Notable people

• Pierre Capretz, developer of the French in Action series for teaching French, was born in Mazamet in 1925.
• Maurice Euzennat (1926–2004), historian and archaeologist, died in Mazamet
• Laurent Jalabert, Road bicycle racing professional was born here.
• Nicolas Jalabert, Road bicycle racing professional was born here.
• Thomas Ramos, French rugby union professional, was born in Mazamet in 1995.
• Pierre Sancan, pianist and composer, was born in Mazamet in 1916.
• Jean-Michel Vernhes, public servant, was born in Mazamet in 1950.

Mazamet, ville morte in 1973

In May 1973, a national road safety awareness campaign that took place on May 17, 1973 in Mazamet, called "Mazamet, ville morte" ("Mazamet, dead city"). The 16,610 inhabitants of the city laid down on the streets for a few minutes to symbolize the 16,500 people killed in road accidents in France the previous year

Tour de France

Mazamet was the start for Stage 14 in the 2007 Tour de France, finishing on the top of Plateau de Beille. The stage was won by Alberto Contador, who later went on to win the Tour. In 2018, Mazamet welcomed the race once again as it passed through on route to Carcassonne.

Twin towns

Mazamet is twinned with:

• Rybnik, Poland^[8]

See also

• Castres-Mazamet Airport
• Communes of the Tarn department
• Tourism in Tarn

References

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Mazamet". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 939.