Libourne


Libourne is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.
It is the wine-making capital of northern Gironde and lies near Saint-Émilion and Pomerol.
WWW Official Site𝕏 ville_libourneFB ville.de.libourne

History

Like other sites at the confluence of important rivers, that of Libourne was appropriated at an early period. Under the Romans a colonia stood rather more than a mile to the south of the present Libourne; it was destroyed during the troubles of the 5th century. Resuscitated by Charlemagne, it was rebuilt in 1269, as Leybornia, and was founded as a bastide by Roger de Leybourne, an English seneschal of Gascony, under the authority of King Edward I of England. It suffered considerably in the struggles of the French and English for the possession of Gironde in the Hundred Years' War, and joined France in the 15th century.
In 1787 the parlement of Bordeaux was exiled to Libourne amid political crises.
In December 1854 John Stuart Mill passed through Libourne, remarking "I stopped at Libourne as I intended & had a walk about it this morning quite the best thing there is the bridge of the Dordogne, the view from which is really fine".

Sights

The Gothic church, restored in the 19th century, has a stone spire high. On the quay there is a machicolated clock-tower which is a survival of the defensive walls of the 14th century. The town-house, containing a small museum and a library, is a quaint relic of the 16th century. It is located by the main square, the Place Abel Surchamp, which hosts every weekend one of the largest fresh food market in the region. There is a statue of Élie, duc Decazes, who was born in the region.

Geography

Libourne is located at the confluence of the Isle and Dordogne rivers. Libourne station has rail connections to Bordeaux, Bergerac, Angoulême, Périgueux, Limoges, Brive-la-Gaillarde and Sarlat-la-Canéda.

Notable people