Libourne

Libourne (French pronunciation: [libuʁn] ^ⓘ; Gascon: Liborna [liˈbuɾnɔ]) is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.

Libourne
Subprefecture and commune
Bridge over the Dordogne river
Coat of arms
Location of Libourne
Libourne Show map of France Libourne Show map of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Coordinates: 44°55′N 0°14′W
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Gironde
Arrondissement	Libourne
Canton	Le Libournais-Fronsadais
Intercommunality	CA Libournais
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Philippe Buisson[1] (PS)
Area 1	20.63 km2 (7.97 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	24,668
• Density	1,196/km2 (3,097/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	33243 /33500
Elevation	2–28 m (6.6–91.9 ft) (avg. 15 m or 49 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

It is the wine-making capital of northern Gironde and lies near Saint-Émilion and Pomerol.

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 (of Leybourne, Kent), 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,^[3] and joined France in the 15th century.

Libourne, view from the mound of Fronsac, pen drawing by Herman Van der Hem, around 1640

In 1787 the parlement of Bordeaux was exiled to Libourne amid political crises.^[4]

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".^[5]

Sights

The Gothic church, restored in the 19th century, has a stone spire 71 m (232 ft) 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.^[3] 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.^{[citation needed]} There is a statue of Élie, duc Decazes, who was born in the region.^[3]

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.

Climate data for Libourne (Saint-Émilion) (1995–2020 normals, extremes 1995–present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	18.6 (65.5)	24.7 (76.5)	26.3 (79.3)	30.8 (87.4)	35.5 (95.9)	39.7 (103.5)	40.9 (105.6)	41.3 (106.3)	37.9 (100.2)	33.0 (91.4)	25.2 (77.4)	19.7 (67.5)	41.3 (106.3)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	9.9 (49.8)	11.6 (52.9)	15.4 (59.7)	18.6 (65.5)	22.2 (72.0)	25.9 (78.6)	27.8 (82.0)	28.0 (82.4)	24.7 (76.5)	20.1 (68.2)	13.8 (56.8)	10.5 (50.9)	19.0 (66.2)
Daily mean °C (°F)	6.6 (43.9)	7.3 (45.1)	10.3 (50.5)	13.1 (55.6)	16.6 (61.9)	19.8 (67.6)	21.5 (70.7)	21.5 (70.7)	18.2 (64.8)	14.9 (58.8)	9.8 (49.6)	7.1 (44.8)	13.9 (57.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	3.3 (37.9)	3.1 (37.6)	5.2 (41.4)	7.6 (45.7)	11.0 (51.8)	13.8 (56.8)	15.1 (59.2)	14.9 (58.8)	11.8 (53.2)	9.6 (49.3)	5.8 (42.4)	3.6 (38.5)	8.7 (47.7)
Record low °C (°F)	−8.3 (17.1)	−12.0 (10.4)	−9.0 (15.8)	−1.8 (28.8)	2.2 (36.0)	5.6 (42.1)	7.1 (44.8)	6.2 (43.2)	2.9 (37.2)	−5.6 (21.9)	−8.0 (17.6)	−9.7 (14.5)	−12.0 (10.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	78.2 (3.08)	61.5 (2.42)	58.0 (2.28)	72.4 (2.85)	68.1 (2.68)	58.2 (2.29)	47.7 (1.88)	55.2 (2.17)	62.0 (2.44)	61.4 (2.42)	91.4 (3.60)	84.0 (3.31)	798.1 (31.42)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	12.5	10.4	10.6	11.2	9.9	8.0	7.3	7.7	8.1	9.8	13.2	12.5	121.3
Source: Meteociel[6]

Population

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 9,100 —     1800 8,076 −1.69% 1806 8,293 +0.44% 1821 8,787 +0.39% 1831 9,838 +1.14% 1836 9,714 −0.25% 1841 9,814 +0.21% 1846 11,813 +3.78% 1851 12,650 +1.38% 1856 13,290 +0.99% 1861 13,565 +0.41% 1866 14,639 +1.54% 1872 14,960 +0.36% 1876 15,231 +0.45% 1881 15,981 +0.97% 1886 16,736 +0.93% 1891 17,867 +1.32% 1896 18,016 +0.17%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 19,175 +1.25% 1906 19,323 +0.15% 1911 20,085 +0.78% 1921 18,083 −1.04% 1926 18,453 +0.41% 1931 19,103 +0.69% 1936 19,491 +0.40% 1946 20,166 +0.34% 1954 19,474 −0.44% 1962 19,834 +0.23% 1968 22,123 +1.84% 1975 21,651 −0.31% 1982 22,119 +0.31% 1990 21,012 −0.64% 1999 21,761 +0.39% 2007 23,471 +0.95% 2012 23,736 +0.22% 2017 24,845 +0.92%
Source: EHESS[7] and INSEE (1968-2017)[8]

Gallery

• 
  Town hall
• 
  Nave of the Chapelle de Condat
• 
  Gate of the Port
• 
  Protestant temple

Notable people

• Eugène Atget (1857–1927), French photographer, "Creator and Purveyor of a Collection of Photographic Views of Old France"
• Georges Charles Marius Engerrand (1877–1961), geologist and archaeologist
• Florian Latorre (born 1997), racing driver
• Louis Le Provost de Launay (1850–1912), French deputy and senator
• Jean-Marie Londeix (1932–2025), French saxophonist
• Jean Marcadé (1920–2012), French Hellenist and historian
• Jean-Marie Poumeyrol (born 1946), artist

See also

• Hull town walls, the town of Hull, also established under Edward I, is said to have been similar in design to the Bastides, in particular Libourne
• Communes of the Gironde department
• Keynsham, twinned with Libourne