What is Rochefourchat?
[[File:Rochefourchat - Place du Château - Côté église Saint-Pierre.jpeg|thumb|Church Saint-Pierre, and cemetery.]] '''Rochefourchat''' ({{IPA-fr|ʁɔʃfuʁʃa}}) is a [[Communes of France|commune]] in the [[Drôme]] [[Departments of France|department]], in the [[Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes]] region, southeastern [[France]]. Today, the commune consists of only one inhabited house. There also is a church, Saint Pierre's Church, a converted barn, and the ruins of a castle. The nearest communes are [[Saint-Nazaire-le-Désert]], [[Les Tonils]], [[Pradelle, Drôme|Pradelle]], and [[Brette]]. Saint-Nazaire-le-Desert is about {{convert|4.5|km}} away. [[Die, Drôme|Die]] is about {{Convert|20|km}} away, [[Montélimar]] about {{Convert|40|km}}. The closest primary school is in Saint-Nazaire-le-Désert. == History == In 1178, the [[castle]] of Rocha Forcha was built by the bishops of the [[arrondissement of Die]] as a stronghold against the [[Holy Roman Emperor]]s. It belonged to French lords until the year 1766. The last one, Lord Rey de Noinville, died that year. In 1796, a French trader, Pierre Jossaud bought the land surrounding the castle and renamed it Rochefourchat. The commune has been passed down through Jossaud's family. == Population == {{Historical populations|1982|3|1990|2|1999|1|2006|1|2007|1|2008|1|2009|1|2010|1|2011|1|2012|1|2013|1|2014|1|2015|1|2016|1|2018|1}}There is only one permanent inhabitant. There are six communes in France where no one lives; these were destroyed or abandoned during the [[World War I|First World War]]. They were left, so that people would remember the events. == Related pages == * [[Communes of the Drôme department]] {{Authority control}} [[Category:Communes in Drôme]]