Beaucaire (French pronunciation: [bokɛʁ]; Occitan and Provençal: Bèucaire [ˌbɛwˈkajɾe]) is a commune in the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France.

[5][6] The Rhône river forms the whole eastern border of the commune as it flows south to join the sea at Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône.

The Canal du Rhône à Sète passes through the commune from Saint-Gilles in the south-west and joins the Rhone in the town.

The north of the commune has hills, especially north of the town centre where the castle is located (80 metres high) as well as Saint-Roman (130 metres).n Called Ugernum by the Romans, Beaucaire derived its modern name from the medieval Belli Quadrum, which described the pine-clad rock rising abruptly from the river.

The city took the name Beaucaire (which means "beautiful stone", probably in reference to its many buildings, to its quarries, or the fact that it had the first hills on the Rhone coming from the sea).

During the Albigensian Crusade, Raymond VII of Toulouse besieged Beaucaire in May 1216 to reclaim his father's property.

[15] At the end of the Hundred Years War in 1453, Charles VII of France declared that Beaucaire would become the site of the Fair of la Madeleine, a commercial fair that would enable the trade of goods from all of the Mediterranean Basin countries to all of France.

[16] The advent of the railway and the end of river trade as well as the removal of its tax-free status by Napoleon gradually destroyed the Fair of the Madeleine and plunged Beaucaire into anonymity.

One result of these years of commercial dominance was the construction of a remarkable number of architecturally significant mansions and palaces by rich merchants of many nationalities.

[17] At the end of the 19th century and the early 20th century some works of great value are built such as the banquette - a stone retaining wall along the eastern side of the city which protected it from the flooding of the Rhône, food markets, and the Municipal Casino which is now the Festival Hall.

[18] In 2016, they gained international attention for naming a street "Rue du Brexit" as a tribute to the United Kingdom voting to leave the European Union.

[25] The commune has:[27] Since 30 January 2014 Beaucaire has a multi-activity healthcare division with multi care professionals, a dental centre, opticians, and a hearing specialist.

[20] Among local businesses, the Craft Brewery of Beaucaire produces and markets several varieties of beer regionally with some Camargue rice.

[34] The headquarters of the multinational group Marie Brizard Wine & Spirits (formerly Belvédère) has been located in Beaucaire since 2011.

Classified as a historical monument since October 10, 1906, the structure was likely built by John, Duke of Berry, Governor of Languedoc.

In 2019, the commune of Beaucaire inaugurated a program to study the monument and create a plan to repair damage to the stonework, improve adjacent drainage, relocate adjacent power poles and lines, and make general improvements to the site.

[40] Beaucaire has a legend of the formidable drac, a monster that rises from the depths of the sea to seize and devour its prey.

The story says the woman expected the worst, but the drac explained that what he wanted was a nanny for his son, the draconnet.