Calvisson (; Provençal: Cauviçon) is a commune in the Gard department in the Occitanie region in southern France. It lies between Nîmes, Montpellier, the Cevennes and the Camargue and has a strong Protestant history. Geography Calvisson is a commune in Gard west of Nîmes. It is in the northern foothills of the Vaunage, a fertile valley surrounded by a rim of limestone hills rising to 200 m. The most prominent hill is the Rock of Gachone, which was the site of an important oppidum, or a fortified town, under the Romans. The natural vegetation is classic garrigue; today the valley is used for vineyards and horticulture. A tiny stream, the Escattes, flows through the village . Calvisson also includes the hamlets of Sinsans and Bizac. History The site is known to have been settled since the Chalcolithic transition (4300–3200 BC) In 1060, at the time of the domination of Counts de Toulouse, the name Calvisson appears for the first time. At the time, it was a fortified town surmounted by two towers which covered 2000 m2. This fortified town controlled all of the Vaunage. In 1304 King Philip IV of France gave to Guillaume de Nogaretas a fiefdom. From the 16th century, with the beginnings of Reformation, Calvisson was divided by the wars of religion. The village becomes a centre of protestantism. In 1681, the Catholic King Louis XIV, used his troops to re-convert Protestants. On 30 June 1685, being Protestant became illegal in Nîmes. The religion moved underground, the paid pastor was replaced by the lay prophet. The wars slowly destroyed the castle which, by the middle of the 17th century is used as stone quarry. The Camisards operated throughout the mainly protestant Cévennes region which in the early years of the eighteenth century also included the Vaunage and the parts of the Camargue around Aigues Mortes. In 1701, the village was a protestant stronghold which was occupied and then, in 1704, used as a base for the royalist troops in the battle of Nages against the protestant forces of Jean Cavalier the prophet and military leader. In 1787, the Rock of Gachone which stands above the village is used as triangulation point by Jean-Dominique Cassini for mapping the area. Population Sights The church of St Saturnin is 12th-century Romanesque and 15th-century Provençal Gothic the Temple is 19th-century neo-classical. the Rock of Gachone rises over the village to the