Marmande (; in

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language Occitan (; o ...

, ''Marmanda'') is a commune in the

Lot-et-Garonne Lot-et-Garonne (, oc, Òlt e Garona) is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the rivers Lot and Garonne, it had a population of 331,271 in 2019.département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...

'' in south-western France.

Geography

Marmande is located 35 km north-west of

Agen The communes of France, commune of Agen (, ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Lot-et-Garonne Departments of France, department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies on the river Garonne southeast of Bordeaux. ...

, on the southern railway from

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...

Sète Sète (; oc, Seta, ), also historically spelt ''Cette'' (official until 1928) and ''Sette'', is a commune in the Hérault department, in the region of Occitania, southern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Sétois'' (male) and ''Sétoises' ...

. The town is situated at the confluence of the Trec with the

Garonne The Garonne (, also , ; Occitan, Catalan, Basque, and es, Garona, ; la, Garumna or ) is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – a ...

on the right bank of the latter river, which is crossed at this point by a suspension bridge. There is a second bridge to the west of Marmande which connects the D933 from the Toulouse/Bordeaux motorway ( A62) to the new by-pass, opened in July 2009, which now leads to Bergerac and the ''département'' of the

Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; oc, Dordonha ) is a large rural department in Southwestern France, with its prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and the Pyrenees, it is named af ...

Marmande station Marmande is a railway station in Marmande, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. The station is located on the Bordeaux–Sète railway and Marmande-Mont-de-Marsan railway lines. The station is served by Intercités (long distance, also night train) and TE ...

has rail connections to Agen, Langon and Bordeaux. Marmande ranks 481st in terms of population for the whole of France. A noted producer of tomatoes, a festival dedicated to tomatoes is held annually in July.

History

Marmande was a ''

bastide Bastides are fortified new towns built in medieval Languedoc, Gascony, Aquitaine, England and Wales during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, although some authorities count Mont-de-Marsan and Montauban, which was founded in 1144, as the f ...

'' founded about 1195 on the site of a more ancient town by

Richard Cœur de Lion Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...

, who granted it a liberal measure of self-government. Its position on the banks of the Garonne made it an important place of toll. It soon passed into the hands of the

counts of Toulouse The count of Toulouse ( oc, comte de Tolosa, french: comte de Toulouse) was the ruler of Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the Frankish kings, the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surroundin ...

, and was three times besieged and taken during the

Albigensian Crusade The Albigensian Crusade or the Cathar Crusade (; 1209–1229) was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted primarily by the French crown ...

, its capture by Amaury de Montfort in 1219 being followed by a massacre of the inhabitants. It was united to the French crown under

Louis IX Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), commonly known as Saint Louis or Louis the Saint, was King of France from 1226 to 1270, and the most illustrious of the Direct Capetians. He was crowned in Reims at the age of 12, following the d ...

. A short occupation by the English in 1447, an unsuccessful siege by Henry IV in 1577 and its resistance of a month to a division of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

's army in 1814, are some important events in its subsequent history.

Population

Sights

Apart from the administrative offices, the most notable building is the church of Notre-Dame, which dates from the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries. The windows of the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, the

altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...

of the 18th century and, in particular, the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...

adjoining the south side, are some of its most interesting features. The town is host to the Garorock music festival.

Economy

The town is renowned for its tomato production. The average income per household is 19,520 €/year https://www.insee.fr/en/statistiques/6457611?geo=ZE2020-7518

Sport

Marmande has a motorcycle longtrack and has hosted a number of

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

grand-prix. The first, in 1997, was won by the English

speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

rider Paul Hurry.

People linked to the commune

* Abel-Dominique Boyé : (1864–1934) born in Marmande ; painter *

Jean-Pierre Fourcade Jean-Pierre Fourcade (born 18 October 1929 in Marmande, Lot-et-Garonne) is a French politician and a member of the Senate of France. He represents the Hauts-de-Seine department and is a member of the Union for a Popular Movement The Union ...

: born in Marmande 18 October 1929 ; Minister of Economy and Finances from 1974 to 1976 (Prime minister:

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as Ma ...

) ; Minister of Equipment in 1976/1977 (Prime minister : Raymond Barre); Mayor of

Boulogne-Billancourt Boulogne-Billancourt (; often colloquially called simply Boulogne, until 1924 Boulogne-sur-Seine, ) is a wealthy and prestigious Communes of France, commune in the Parisian area, located from its Kilometre zero, centre. It is a Subprefectures in ...

(1995–2007) and Senator of Hauts-de-Seine since 1977. * Hubert Ruffe : born in

Penne-d'Agenais Penne-d'Agenais (Languedocien: ''Pena d’Agenés'') is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in south-western France. Penne-d'Agenais station has rail connections to Périgueux and Agen. See also *Communes of the Lot-et-Garonne department ...

29 August 1899, died 28 August 1995 ; active in the 1920s in defence of peasants, he was elected as a communist deputy for the Marmande constituency in 1946 and re-elected to this post seven times between 1946 and 1981. He appeared in 1974 in

Jean-Daniel Simon Jean-Daniel Simon (30 November 1942 – 3 February 2021) was a French film director, screenwriter and actor. He directed eight films between 1968 and 1985. In 1975 he was a member of the jury at the 9th Moscow International Film Festival. Sele ...

' film '' Il pleut toujours où c'est mouillé'', playing himself and describing the difficulties faced by peasants during that period. * Renaud Jean : born in Marmande (1887–1961) ; leader of peasant syndicalism in France during the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...

and first communist peasant deputy, in 1920, for the Marmande constituency. He was re-elected. * Jean Cadenat : born 16 April 1908 in Marmande; died 28 June 1992 in Marmande, ichthyologist *

Léopold Faye Leopold may refer to: People * Leopold (given name) * Leopold (surname) Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Leopold (''The Simpsons''), Superintendent Chalmers' assistant on ''The Simpsons'' * Leopold Bloom, the protagonist o ...

: born 16 November 1828 in Marmande ; died 5 September 1900 in Birac. He had been mayor of Marmande, then occupied national offices : Minister of public instruction, religion and fine arts (12 December 1887 – 3 April 1888), then Minister of Agriculture in 1889. * Jean Jules Brun : born in Marmande 24 April 1849, died 1911, Minister of War under the Third Republic, from 24 July 1909 to 27 February 1911 (First government of Aristide Briand). General. * Paul Bourrillon (1877–1942) : cyclist *

François Combefis François Combefis (or Combefisius) (November 1605 – 23 March 1679) was a French Dominican patrologist. He published previously unedited works by Saint John Chrysostom. Life He was born at Marmande, made his preliminary studies in the Jes ...

: Dominican, born in Marmande in 1605. *

Tristan Derème Tristan Derème (February 13, 1889 – October 24, 1941), born Philippe Huc, was a French poet and writer. He had lived in Paris, but would often return to Oloron-Sainte-Marie, where his mother lived. There, he would recuperate through writing p ...

: poet, born in Marmande in 1899. *

Pierrick Fédrigo Pierrick Fédrigo (born 30 November 1978) is a French former racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2002 and 2016 for the , , and teams. He was the winner of the French National Road Race Championships in 2005, and won four stages at t ...

: cyclist, born in Marmande 20 November 1978. * Jean-Paul Cousin :

graphic designer A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography, or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, ...

* Jean-Pierre de Vincenzi :

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

trainer, born in Marmande 27 March 1957, trainer of the French basketball team that became vice champions at the

2000 Sydney Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

. Technical director of the

Fédération Française de Basket-Ball The French Basketball Federation (FFBB) (french: Fédération Française de Basketball) is the governing body of basketball in France. It was founded in 1932 (and members of the FIBA since 1933). The Federation operates the France national teams ...

. *

Jean-Jacques Crenca Jean-Jacques Crenca (born 3 April 1969) is a French rugby player. Crenca was born in Marmande, Aquitaine. He played for SU Agen before moving to RC Toulon for the 2006/07 season. He was a member of France's 2003 Rugby World Cup squad playing at pr ...

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 its m ...

player *

Francesca Solleville Francesca Solleville (born 2 March 1932, Périgueux) is a French singer. She lives in Malakoff ( Hauts-de-Seine). She is the granddaughter of the founder of the . She is married to the painter Louis . Biography Francesca Solleville was born in ...

: French singer, grand daughter of the Italian socialist Luigi Campolonghi, spent part of her childhood in Marmande. In 1990 she wrote a song called "Marmande" for her album ''Je suis ainsi''. * Laurent Queyssi : author, screenwriter and translator. * Jean Baylac : former leader of a local resistance network, deputy mayor of Marmande, Deputy Poujadist in 1956. * Robert Dangas : film director and photographer, was born in rue des Remparts 2 June 1942 and lived in Marmande until 1952. * Jean-Claude Dubreuil : novelist *

Pierre Deluns-Montaud Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...

: 1845 – 1907, Deputy for Marmande constituency (6 April 1879 to 31 May 1898), Minister of public works (prime minister: Charles Floquet) 3 April 1888 to 14 February 1889.

Twin towns

* Ejea de los Caballeros, Spain *

Portogruaro Portogruaro ( vec, Porto, fur, Puart) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Venice, Veneto, northern Italy. The city is the centre of a district, made up of 11 ''comuni'', which form the Venezia Orientale with the San Donà di Piav ...

, Italy * Peso da Régua, Portugal