History
Ariège is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the counties of Foix and Couserans.

Foix is the administrative capital of the Ariege and 2 other major towns are Pamiers and Mirepoix. Foix is an ancient medieval town with a fine fortress perched on a hill above the town, called Chateau de Foix. The fortress has been attacked many times, including by Simon de Montfort, without anyone succeeding to capture it and it has also been used as a prison. The names of English Prisoners of War can still be seen on the old cell walls. Another famous chateau is Montsegur, spectacularly located on a rocky outcrop at a height of 1200 metres (3900 ft). The present ruin at Montségur is not actually the work of the Cathars. During the siege of 1244 the chateau was largely destroyed and the fortress was largely rebuilt in the second half of the 13th century. The chateau has a painful past for after the fall of the chateau in 1244, more than 200 Cathar priests were burnt at the stake as heretics due to their alternative Christian (Cathar)faith.

Of the other towns in the Ariege, Pamiers offers a large commercial centre and 3 fine churches, Mirepoix is a beautiful medieval town, Saint-Girons is a fine agricultural centre with one of the best markets (on Saturdays) in south west France. Saint-Lizier is a very picturesque medieval hilltop town with winding streets and fine views. The cloisters in the church are definitely worth seeing.

The department is part of the current region of Midi-Pyrénées and is surrounded by the French departments of Haute-Garonne, Aude, and Pyrénées-Orientales, as well as Spain and Andorra on the south.

The geography is dominated by the Pyrenees mountains, which form the border between France and Spain. There are hundreds of miles of well marked paths which lead you to explore the magnificent Pyrenees mountains. The high mountains are easily accessible via good roads, cable cars or by foot. There are a number of lodges providing high level mountain accommodation that is comfortable, warm with good meals, at 2000 m!

There are also a number of fresh water lakes which provide a variety of activities including, walking, swimming, fishing, canoeing, sailboarding and also picnicing.

The Ariege has several of its own downhill ski resorts, the three largest being Ax-Bonascre, Les Monts D'Olmes and Guzet. There are many cross country ski-ing resorts, one of the best being at Plateau de Beille, near Les Cabannes.

The Pyrenees mountain range forms a fantastic backdrop to the entire Ariege Department, rising some 10000 feet (3000m) along the border with Andorra and Spain. The highest peaks are clearly visible visible from Toulouse in the Haute Garonne. It is one of the least populated and most unspoiled regions of France. The locals enjoy keeping old traditions alive, especially farming techniques. Consequently, as less insecticides, for example, have been used, the flora and fauna of the area are rich in diversity and number. Butterflies are seen in huge numbers, birds are numerous, particularly noticeable are the large birds of prey, including the magnificent Griffon vultures.

There are also many unspoiled villages and hamlets tucked away in the valleys close to the department's border with Spain, such as Seix, Cominac and Aulus Les Bain, and picturesque mountain villages, most notably Aleu which comes alive in the holiday season.

Climate.
 
Mont Valier seen from the road to Port d'Aula in the Haut CouseransAriège stands on the eastern limit of oceanic dominance over rainfall, but other influences are felt:

Mediterranean — particularly visible in the vegetation of the foothills and of the valley of the Ariège river towards Tarascon, and in the Pays de Sault;
Continental — in the Pyrenean valleys, with many storms and big differences of temperature between day and night.
There is no great tendency to summer drought as the flow of air from the north-west brings rain throughout the year. Rainfall is moderate on the foothills and in some sheltered valleys, measuring 700 to 1,000 mm per year, but increases significantly in the higher valleys with levels between 1,000 mm and 1,800 mm. The slopes exposed to the north-west, such as Aulus and Orlu, are, as one would expect, the wettest, together with the frontal ridges that meet air flow from the southwest (giving rise to the Foehn effect). Snow cover is common over 1,000 metres, lasting several months above 1,500 to 2,000 metres. Some periglacial areas exist over 2,500 m but the only true glacier in Ariège is that of the Mont Valier, near Castillon-en-Couserans.

Temperatures are mild in the foothills, e.g. at the city of Foix (400 metres) the average is 5°C in January and 19°C in July. However, they decline rapidly with elevation, e.g. at l'Hospitalet-près-l'Andorre (1,430 m) it is 0°C in January and 14°C in July.

Demographics.
 
The castle at Foix
Cathedral of Saint-Antonin at Pamiers
Covered shopfronts at MirepoixThe inhabitants of the department are called Ariégeois.

The department has 151,477 inhabitants, or 146,289 as the population without double counting.

The Ariege department is a largely unknown department which is situated next to the Aude in the most southern part of the Midi-Pyrenees region and shares its borders with the Aude, Andorra, Haute Garonne and the Pyrenees Orientales. This is predominantly a farming area as the soil is rich and fertile and yet more than 50% of the Ariège is mountainous, with 490 965 hectares is covered by forests.

Economic activity Data Value Date
Businesses created 814 2005
Number of businesses 19 750 15 November 2006
Rate of business creation 10.4 % (Ariège) 9.3 % (Midi-Pyrénées) 9.3 % France) 2003
Unemployment rate 10.4 % (Ariège) 9.1 % (Midi-Pyrénées) 9 % (France) September 2006
Value of Exports 450 M€ 2005
Value of Imports 368 M€ 2005
source : Ariège Expansion  

The Ariège Chamber of Commerce and Industry is situated at Foix. The department’s Economic Development Agency (ARIEGE EXPANSION) is at Verniolle.[2] The department has established three ‘business incubators’ to support enterprise in Ariège.

The department has two parliamentary constituencies and twenty-two cantons. Broadly speaking, Ariège has been firmly held by the Socialist Party since the days of the Third Republic, although in recent years the right has managed to make some inroads.

Nevertheless, the department remains one of the most left-wing departments in France, and the left holds all but three of the department's 22 cantons.

The region was originally part of Aquitaine and has retained many hallmarks of the Gascon culture and Gascon language.

Ariégeois gastronomy is based on the cooking of Pyrenean regional food, such as cheese or charcuterie from the mountain country. The department is also well advanced in the field of organic farming.

According to the general census of the population of 8 March 1999, 26.5 % of available housing in the department consists of second homes.

Famous people.

Pierre Bayle (1647-1706), philosopher and writer, born at Carla-Bayle (then known as Carla-le-Comte; the commune changed its name in his honour)
Théophile Delcassé (1852-1923), politician, minister, ambassador, born at Pamiers
Jacques Dupont (born in 1928), cyclist, holder of the Olympic record, born at Lézat-sur-Lèze
Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924), composer, born at Pamiers
Jacques Fournier (1285-1342), bishop of Pamiers then of Mirepoix, pope under the name Benedict XII from 1336 to 1342 (Avignon), born at Canté near Saverdun
Claude Piquemal (born in 1939), athlete and sprinter, Olympic medalist, born at Siguer

Text excerpts from Wikipedia.