Altillac


Altillac is a commune in the Corrèze department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of central France.
WWW Official Site

History

Altillac was the seat of a Viguerie under the Carolingian dynasty.The village's first written mention is in the cartulary of the monastery at Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne a population existed in the Neolithic period attested to by the existence of dolmens in the commune.
On 28 May 1942, the regional prefect of Limoges requisitioned land from the Chateau of Doux to create an internment centre for Jewish families.

Geography

image:Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne Limousin France 2010 Kapel des Pénitents 4.jpg|thumb|left|View of Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne across the river from Altillac
Altillac is a large commune located in the central massif of the Dordogne in eastern Nouvelle-Aquitaine, almost on the border with Occitania. It was formerly called Xaintrie.
It is located some 30 km south-east of Brive-la-Gaillarde, 130 km south-west of Clermont-Ferrand, and about 180 km east of Bordeaux. Access to the commune is on road D940 which goes to the village just 1 km east of Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne then continues south through the commune to Biars-sur-Cère. The D116E branches south-east from this road to join the D14 east of Gagnac-sur-Cère. There is also the D116 coming from Brivezac in the north and the D41 highway to La Chapelle-Saint-Géraud in the north-east.
The Dordogne river forms the western boundary of the commune with some streams from the commune flowing into it including the Ruisseau du Suquet. The eastern border of the commune is formed by the Ruisseau d'Orges which flows south into the Ceres river. The northern border is formed by the Ruisseau de Chauvac which flows west into the Dordogne. The Ruisseau de Laumond on the eastern side also flows east into the Orges as does the Ruisseau de Malaval in the south.
There are quite a number of villages and hamlets in the commune. These are:
  • Andole
  • Courbignac
  • Esclaux
  • Fontmerle
  • Freyssignes
  • Gramond
  • Guilles
  • L'Aumond
  • L'Aussac
  • La Borderie
  • La Bourelle
  • La Majorie
  • La Palide
  • La Poujade
  • La Poulvélarie
  • La Veyssière
  • Le Rodal
  • Le Sagrier
  • Le Treil
  • Les Escures
  • Paliole
  • Siran

Population

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Altillacois or Altillacoises in French.

Local government

List of Successive Mayors of Altillac:
FromToName
18081834Antoine Dauvis Bichiran
18341837Jean Frédéric Bichiran
18371878Jean Joseph Fontanille
18781883Jean Baptiste Victor Borie
18831884Joseph Lebrun
18841885Jules d'Humières
18851888Jules Argueyrolles
18881904Philippe Dounier
19041908Louis Lamond
19081919Jean Versejoux
19191934Ernest Faugère
19341944Georges Mas
19441945Romain Conche
19451958Georges Mas
19581977Romain Conche
19771983Robert Audrerie
19831995Pierre Poulvélarie
19952001Jean-Claude Vergne
20012020Robert Vialard
20202026Denis Pinsac

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

  • The Chateau du Doux was built in 1904-1906 from plans by Jean-Louis Pascal. Influenced by the style used in Deauville, it is built in the style of Xaintrie, the nearest town, to serve as a luxury hotel. It is built above a valley and offers views of the surrounding landscape. Different styles are used for the window frames: simple windows, large curved bayss with stone latticework, cross windows, skylights, and capucine passantes. It used local materials to allow it to have a regional air: stones of various colours and a slate roof. Inside, the woodwork is Art Nouveau.
  • On the other side of the valley is the Doux domain where large farm buildings have been built: huge barns/stables on two levels with many barns built in imitation of small farms, which form a semblance of a hamlet, a henhouse, and a bread oven. All buildings - the hotel and the farm buildings - are certified as heritage of the 20th century.
  • The Dolmen de la Borderie - a Neolithic Dolmen in good condition.
  • The Dolmen de Peyre-Levade
  • Other chateaus are at Miegemont, la Majorie, Bra, Vaurs, Sugarde, Bichiran, and Gary.

Religious heritage

  • The Church of Saint-Etienne is registered as an historical monument. It was built in 1528 except for the bell tower which dates back to the 14th century. The Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects:
  • *A set of Baptismal fonts
  • *Covers for the Baptismal fonts
  • *Bowls for the Baptismal fonts
  • *The panelling in the Choir
  • *6 Bas-reliefs
  • *The panelling on the walls
  • Devotional fountain dedicated to Saint-Estèphe from 1385.

Personalities

Notable personalities linked to the commune include: