Rodez

Rodez, a town of southern France (dept. Aveyron), stands on a bold bluff encircled by the Aveyron, 148 miles by rail NW. of Montpellier. The Gothic cathedral (1277-1535) has a tower, 260 feet high, crowned by a colossal image of the Virgin. There are several mediæval houses, remains of a Roman amphitheatre, and a restored Roman aqueduct. Coal-mining, cloth-making, tanning, and cattle-dealing are the principal occupations. Pop. (1872) 12,111; (1891) 15,295.