GARD, a department in the south of France, part of the old province of Languedoc. Pop. (1931) 406,815. Area 2,270 sq.m. It is bounded N. by the departments of Lozere and Ardeche, E. by the Rhone, which separates it from Vaucluse and Bouches-du Rhone, S. by the Mediterranean, S.W. by Herault and W. by Aveyron. Gard is divided into three sharply-defined regions. The tree-clad Cevennes, with their deep and fruitful valleys, occupy the north-west, reaching a height of 5,120 ft. on the frontier of Lozere. The Garrigues, a dry, hilly limestone region stretches south from the Cevennes over about half the department, and grows cereals, vine and olive. The southern coastal plain is un healthy because it has numerous lagoons and marshes, but it corn prises the best arable land and vineyards in Gard.
Besides the Rhone and the Ardeche, the principal rivers are the Ceze, Gard, Vidourle and Herault. They all rise in the Cevennes, and the Ceze and the Gard feed the Rhone, the lower Vidourle forming the southwest boundary of the department. The Herault rises, and flows for a short part of its course, in the west of Gard. The upper course of the river Gard is in mountain gorges, and melting snows often cause disastrous floods. Near Remoulins it is crossed by a celebrated Roman aqueduct—the Pont du Gard. The canal de Beaucaire extends from the Rhone at Beaucaire to Aigues-Mortes, which communicates with the Mediterranean at Grau-du-Roi by means of the Grand-Roubine canal.
The climate is warm in the south-east, colder in the north-west ; it is rather changeable, and rain-storms are common. The cold and violent north-west wind known as the mistral is its worst drawback. Les Fumades (near Allegre) and Euzet have mineral springs. The chief grain crops are wheat and oats. Rye, barley and potatoes are also grown. Gard is famed for its cattle, its breed of small horses, and its sheep, yielding very fine wool. In the rearing of silk-worms it ranks first among French departments. The principal fruit trees are the olive, mulberry and chestnut. The vine is extensively cultivated and yields excellent red and white wines. The department is rich in minerals, namely coal, iron, lime, lignite, asphalt, zinc, lead and copper, for the most part situated in the neighbourhoods of Ales and La Grand'-Combe and Le Vigan. Much salt is obtained from the coastal marshes. The fisheries are productive. Manufactures include silk, of which Ales is the chief centre, cotton and woollen fabrics, hosiery, car pets, ironware, hats (Anduze), gloves, paper, leather, earthenware and glass. There are important metallurgical works, the chief of which are those of Besseges. The exports of Gard include coal, lignite, coke, asphalt, building-stone, iron, steel, silk, hosiery, wine, olives, grapes and truffles.
The department is served by the P.L.M. railway. It is divided into the arrondissements of Nimes, Ales, Uzes and Le Vigan, with 4o cantons and 353 communes. The chief town is Nimes, which is the seat of a bishopric of the province of Avignon and of a court of appeal. Gard belongs to the 15th military region (Marseilles), and to the academie (educational division) of Mont pellier. Nimes, Ales, Uzes, Aigues-Mortes, Beaucaire, Saint-Gilles, Besseges, La Grand'-Combe and Villeneuve-les-Avignon are the principal towns. Opposite the manufacturing town of Pont-St. Esprit the Rhone is crossed by a fine mediaeval bridge more than I,000 yd. long built by the Pontiff brethren. Le Vigan, an ancient town with several old houses, carries on silk-spinning.