HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Cognac (; Saintongese: ''Cougnat''; oc, Conhac ) is a commune in the
Charente Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
department, southwestern France. Administratively, the commune of Cognac is a subprefecture of the Charente department.


Name

The name is believed to be formed from individual masculine name -Connius, Gallic name, and the suffix -acum, which would correspond to the "domain of Connius".


History

The town of Cognac was unknown before the ninth century, when it was fortified. During the
Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...
, the town continually changed sides, according to the tides of war. In 1526, it lent its name to the War of the League of Cognac, the military alliance established by King
Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin on ...
to fight against the
House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
. As a benefit of the War League of Cognac, King Francis I granted to the town of Cognac the commercial right to participate in the
salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...
trade conducted along the river, from which regional Cognac developed into a centre for the production of
wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented grapes. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different ...
and brandy. In November 1651, Cognac was besieged by rebels led by Prince de Condé during the 1648-1653 civil war, the " Fronde"; and the town was relieved in December by a force under
Comte d'Harcourt {{Unreferenced, date=June 2019, bot=noref (GreenC bot) When the Viking chieftain Rollo obtained via the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte the territories which would later make up Normandy, he distributed them as estates among his main supporters. Am ...
; afterwards, King
Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...
granted Cognac additional commercial rights. Cognac was part of the historic French province of
Angoumois Angoumois (), historically the County of Angoulême, was a county and province of France, originally inferior to the parent duchy of Aquitaine, similar to the Périgord to its east but lower and generally less forested, equally with occasional ...
. In 1790, following the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
that began the year before, the provinces were abolished and Angoumois became part of the newly created department of
Charente Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
.


Geography

Cognac is situated on the river
Charente Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
between the towns of
Angoulême Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; oc, Engoleime) is a commune, the prefecture of the Charente department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of southwestern France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Angoumoisins ...
and Saintes. The majority of the town has been built on the river's left bank, with the smaller right bank area known as the Saint Jacques district. The town is situated on one of the pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela and is home to the French Air Force training base 709. Cognac is southwest of Paris.


Cognac brandy

The town gives its name to one of the world's best-known types of brandy or eau de vie. Drinks must be made in certain areas around the town of Cognac and must be made according to strictly defined regulations to be granted the name Cognac. Cognac is a unique spirit in that it is double-distilled. This process can be viewed in one of the many "Grande Marque" Cognac houses which all have visitor centres. Most central in the town are Hennessy, Martell, Otard, Camus and Remy Martin. About east of Cognac is Jarnac, home to Courvoisier. There are six vineyard areas around the Cognac area, all of which are within the Appellation Controlee for Cognac, but which are considered to vary in quality from the best growth area of "Grande Champagne" (nothing to do with the Champagne wine region in NE France), through "Petite Champagne" then "Borderies", "Fins Bois", "Bon Bois" and finally "Bois Ordinaire". The best Cognacs are generally only made using Grande and Petite Champagne grapes, but all Cognac is produced by blending a variety of ''eau de vie'' which can be made from grapes from different locations, and from different vintages. It is the cellar master's skill that ensures that a brand's Cognac is recognizable regardless of when it is produced, since he can blend multiple ''eaux de vie'' to achieve the right taste for his house. Different qualities of Cognac are produced by all brands, and include VS ("Very Special"); VSOP ("Very Superior r, more commonly, "Special", though the Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac specifies "Superior"Old Pale") and XO ("eXtra Old"). (English terms are still used, since in the early days of Cognac production it was the British who were the main consumers and also became some of the main producers of Cognac, using techniques acquired from the distillation of whisky, etc.) These are controlled by the length of time the Cognac is allowed to mature in oak barrels, a minimum time being required at each grade level. The longer the Cognac matures in the barrel the smoother it will generally become. Once it is bottled no further development takes place. Most houses still have barrels of Cognac dating back to the 19th century sitting in their cellars waiting for fine blending by the Cellar Master.


Climate


Population

The inhabitants of the town are known in French as ''Cognaçais''.


Landmarks

* The Old Town. The town's medieval quarter "Vieux Cognac" runs from the Tours Saint-Jacques, alongside the river, up to the Saint-Léger church. The area contains many unusual buildings, built between the 15th and 18th centuries, situated on narrow cobbled streets. Many contain sculptures of the
salamander Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All t ...
, the symbol of King François I, as well as gargoyles and richly decorated façades. * The Château des Valois, an important medieval trading post. * The Saint-Léger church. Church Exterior * The musée d'Art et d'Histoire (art and history museum) * The musée des arts du Cognac (art museum) * The Saint-Gobain glassworks and barrelworks *
Cognac Public Garden Cognac Public Garden (french: links=no, Le jardin public de Cognac) is located in of the heart of the town of Cognac in the departement of Charente, France. It is one of the few English-styled gardens in France open to the general public. The ...


Notable people

* The
glass Glass is a non- crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling (quenchin ...
maker Claude Boucher, inventor of the glass-blowing machine in around 1880, lived and worked in Cognac * The car manufacturer Louis Delâge was born in Cognac in 1874 *
Francis I Francis I or Francis the First may refer to: * Francesco I Gonzaga (1366–1407) * Francis I, Duke of Brittany (1414–1450), reigned 1442–1450 * Francis I of France (1494–1547), King of France, reigned 1515–1547 * Francis I, Duke of Saxe-Lau ...
(king of France between 1515 and 1547) was born in the town's castle in 1494. The town's main square is named after him and a statue of the king, on horseback over his enemies, stands at the centre. * Paul-Emile Lecoq de Boisbaudran, born in Cognac in 1838, discovered the elements Gallium in 1875 and Samarium in 1878 * Jean Monnet, one of the founding fathers of the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
, was born in Cognac in 1888 and ran the Monnet Cognac family-controlled enterprise in the 1920s * The French adult film star and model François Sagat was born in Cognac. * The French poet
Octavien de Saint-Gelais Octavien de Saint-Gelais (1468–1502) was a French churchman, poet, and translator. He translated the ''Aeneid'' into French, as well as Ovid's ''Heroides''. Born in Cognac, Charente, he studied theology at the Collège de Navarre, and be ...
was born in Cognac in 1468


Sport

*
US Cognac Union Sportive Cognaçaise is a French rugby union club, based in Cognac in the Charente département (Nouvelle-Aquitaine region). They play at the Parc des Sports (capacity 2,800), and wear white and red. They were founded on 2 December 1898 and ...
is the city's
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
team. *Cognac was the start of Stage 19 in the 2007 Tour de France.


Twin towns—sister cities

Cognac is twinned with: * Boala, Burkina Faso * Bozhou, China * Denison, United States * Königswinter, Germany * Michalovce, Slovakia *
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
, Scotland * Pisco,
Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
* Tovuz, Azerbaijan * Valdepeñas, Spain * Vyškov, Czech Republic


Gallery


See also

* The
Coniacian The Coniacian is an age or stage in the geologic timescale. It is a subdivision of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or Upper Cretaceous Series and spans the time between 89.8 ± 1 Ma and 86.3 ± 0.7 Ma (million years ago). The Coniacian is preceded ...
Age of the
Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...
Period of geological time is named for the city of Cognac *
Communes of the Charente department The following is a list of the 364 communes of the Charente department of France. The communes cooperate in the following intercommunalities (as of 2020):Communes of Charente Subprefectures in France Angoumois Charente communes articles needing translation from French Wikipedia