Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; oc, Engoleime) is a commune, the prefecture of 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, in the

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by ...

region of southwestern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Angoumoisins'' or ''Angoumoisines''. Located on a plateau overlooking a

meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex ban ...

of the river

, the city is nicknamed the "balcony of the southwest". The city proper's population is a little less than 42,000 but it is the centre of an urban area of 110,000 people extending more than from east to west. Formerly the capital 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 the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

, Angoulême was a fortified town for a long time, and was highly coveted due to its position at the centre of many roads important to communication, so therefore it suffered many sieges. From its tumultuous past, the city, perched on a rocky spur, inherited a large historical, religious, and urban heritage which attracts a lot of tourists. Nowadays, Angoulême is at the centre of an agglomeration, which is one of the most industrialised regions between

Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhôn ...

and

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 – ...

(the paper industry was established in the 16th century, a

foundry A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...

and electromechanical engineering developed more recently). It is also a commercial and administrative city with its own university of technology, and a vibrant cultural life. This life is dominated by the Angoulême International Comics Festival, the FFA Angoulême Francophone Film Festival and the Musiques Métisses Festival that contribute substantially to the international renown of the city. Moreover, Angoulême hosts 40 animation and video game studios that produce half of France's animated production. Wes Anderson's '' The French Dispatch'' was filmed in this city. Angoulême is called "Ville de l'Image" which means literally "City of the Image". The commune has been awarded four flowers by the ''National Council of Towns and Villages in Bloom'' in the ''Competition of cities and villages in Bloom''.

Geography

Angoulême is an Acropolis city located on a hill overlooking a loop of the

limited in area upstream by the confluence of the Touvre and downstream by the Anguienne and Eaux Claires.

Location and access

Angoulême is located at the intersection of a major north–south axis: the N10 Paris-Bayonne; and the east–west axis: the N14 ''route Central-Europe Atlantique'' Limoges-Saintes. Angoulême is also connected to

Périgueux Périgueux (, ; oc, Peireguers or ) is a commune in the Dordogne department, in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. Périgueux is the prefecture of Dordogne, and the capital city of Périgord. It is also ...

and Saint-Jean-d'Angely by the D939 and to

Libourne Libourne (; oc, label= Gascon, Liborna ) 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-Ém ...

by the D674. *By train: the Paris-Bordeaux line, served mainly by

TGV The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...

, passes through Angoulême and the

TER Ter or TER may refer to: Places * River Ter, in Essex, England * Ter (river), in Catalonia * Ter (department), a region in France * Torre (river), (Slovene: ''Ter''), a river in Italy * Ter, Ljubno, a settlement in the Municipality of Ljubno o ...

Limoges-Saintes provides connections. *By water: although the river Charente is currently only used for tourism, it was a communication channel, especially for freight, until the 19th century and the port of l'Houmeau was very busy. The Angoulême-Cognac International Airport is at Brie-Champniers.

Districts

Old Angoulême is the old part between the ramparts and the town centre with winding streets and small squares. The city centre is also located on the plateau and was portrayed by Honoré de Balzac in "The Lost Illusions" as "the height of grandeur and power". There is a Castle, a town hall, a prefecture, and a cathedral with grand houses everywhere. Unlike Old Angoulême, however, the entire city centre was greatly rebuilt in the 19th century. Surrounding the city were five old faubourgs: l'Houmeau, Saint-Cybard, Saint-Martin, Saint-Ausone, and la Bussatte. The district of l'Houmeau was described by Balzac as "based on trade and money" because this district lived on trade, boatmen, and their scows. The port of l'Houmeau was created in 1280 on the river bank. It marked the beginning of the navigable part from Angoulême to the sea. Saint-Cybard, on the bank of the Charente, was created around the

Abbey of Saint-Cybard The Abbey of Saint-Cybard was a Benedictine monastery located just outside the northern city walls of Angoulême. According to Gregory of Tours in the ''Historia Francorum'' (VI, 8), the monastery was founded by Saint Eparchius in the sixth cen ...

then became an industrial area with papermills, especially ''Le Nil''. Saint-Martin - Saint-Ausone is a district composed of two former parishes outside the ramparts. At La Bussatte the Champ de Mars esplanade is now converted into a shopping mall, and adjoins Saint-Gelais. Today the city has fifteen districts: * Centre-ville * Old Angoulême * Saint-Ausone - Saint-Martin * Saint-Gelais * La Bussatte - Champ de Mars * L'Houmeau * Saint-Cybard * Victor-Hugo, Saint-Roch is notable for its military presence. * Basseau is a district which was created in the 19th century with the port of Basseau, the explosives factory in 1821, the Laroche-Joubert papermill in 1842, then the bridge in 1850. * Sillac - La Grande-Garenne was a private housing estate then was built up with

HLM An habitation à loyer modéré (HLM, , ), is a form of low-income housing in France, Algeria, Senegal, and Quebec. It may be public or private, with rent subsidies. HLMs constitute 16% of all housing in France.Puymoyen commune in 1945Pierre Dubourg-Noves (dir.), ''History of Angoulême and its surroundings'', Toulouse, Éditions Privat, coll. "Univers de la France et des pays francophones", 1990, 319 p. (, notice BnF no FRBNF350724243), p. 295-296 and built-up as a collective habitat from 1972. * Le Petit Fresquet was also detached from Puymoyen and is semi-rural. * Frégeneuil was also detached from Puymoyen and is semi-rural.

Panorama of the city

Angoulême 16 Le plateau vu de Saint-Martin 2014

Neighbouring communes and villages

Google Maps
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Hydrography

The ''Port-l'Houmeau'', the old port on the Charente located in the district of l'Houmeau is in a flood zone and during floods the Besson Bey Boulevard is usually cut.

Geology

Geologically the town belongs to the Aquitaine Basin as does three-quarters of the western department of

. The commune is located on the same

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

from the

Upper Cretaceous The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''creta'', ...

period which occupies the southern half of the department of Charente, not far from

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of ...

formations beginning at Gond-Pontouvre. The earliest Cretaceous period - the

Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the ICS' geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous Series. An age is a unit of geochronology; it is a unit of time; the stage is a unit in ...

- is in the relatively low areas (l'Houmeau, the heights of Saint-Cybard, Sillac), at an average altitude of 50m. The city was established on the

Plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

(altitude 100m) that dominates the loop of the River Charente, a Turonian (also called ''Angoumien'') formation which forms a dissected plateau of parallel valleys and a cuesta facing north that extends towards

La Couronne Fourteen ships of the French Navy or the Galley Corps (which was separate from the Navy) of the Ancien Régime or Empire have borne the name ''Couronne'' ("crown"): * , the first major warship to be built in France – actually launched in 1632/3 ...

to the west and Garat to the east. This limestone plateau contains natural cavities which have been refurbished by man in the form of three or four floors of caves, some of which include antique grain silos. The valley of the Charente is made up of old and new alluvium which provides rich soil for farming and some sandpits. These alluvial deposits were deposited successively during the Quaternary period on the inside of two meanders of the river that are Basseau and Saint-Cybard. The oldest alluviums are on the plain of Basseau and reach a relative height of 25m.

Relief

The old part of the city is built on the plateau - a rocky outcrop created by the valleys of the Anguienne and Charente at an altitude of - while on the river bank the area subject to flooding is high. Angoulême is characterized by the presence of ramparts on a cliff high. The plateau of ''Ma Campagne'', south of the old town, has almost the same features and peaks at 109 m in the woods of Saint-Martin. The plateau is elongated and separates the valleys of Eaux Claires, which is the southern boundary of the commune, from that of Anguienne, which is parallel. Both plateaux overlook the Charente valley and the outlying areas such as l'Houmeau, Basseau, and Sillac at their western ends. The plateau of Angoulême is the northwest extension of the Soyaux plateau. L'Houmeau, the station area, and that of Grand-Font are to the north of the plateau along the small Vimière valley, also a tributary of the Charente, but further north (towards Gond-Pontouvre and L'Isle-d'Espagnac) than Anguienne is to the south. The highest point of the city of Angoulême is at an altitude of 133m near Peusec located to the south-east near the border with Puymoyen. The lowest point is 27 m, located along the Charente at Basseau.IGN Map on Géoportail

The ramparts

Since Roman times ramparts have surrounded the Plateau of Angoulême. Repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt, their reconstruction was finally stopped in the 19th century. The Ramparts are classified as historical monumentsMinistry of Culture, Mérimée and the ''Ramparts Tour'' is one of the main attractions of the city. ;The Ramparts of Angoulême File:Angoulême1.4.JPG, North Rampart File:Ang remp1.JPG, Near the covered market File:Ang remp4.JPG, The Léchelle Tower File:Angouleme20050314Blorg.JPG, The Rampart du midi

Climate

Angoulême is under an oceanic influence and similar to that of the city of Cognac where the departmental weather station is located. Precipitations are modest all year long, with a slight drying tendency during summer.

Toponymy

Since Antiquity and through the Middle Ages, the name of the town has been attested in many forms in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

and

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intel ...

: *''Iculisma''Letter of Ausone, Louis Maurin in: Jean Combes (dir.) and Michel Luc (dir.), ''Charente from prehistory to modern times (collective work)'', St-Jean-d'Y, Imprimerie Bordessoules, coll. "History by documentrs", 1986, 429 p. (, notice BnF no FRBNF34901024q), p. 56,69,70 and ''Eculisna''Ernest Nègre, ''Toponymy General of France'', Librairie Droz, Genève, volume 1: Pre-Celtic, Celtic, and Roman formations, 1990, 704 pages, p. 53
Read online
consulted on 31 December 2012 from the 4th century *''civitas Engolismensium'' around 400AD *''Ecolisima'' (

Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gaul ...

currency)''Etymological Dictionary of place names in France'', Librairie Guénégaud,

Albert Dauzat Albert Dauzat (; 4 July 1877 – 31 October 1955) was a French linguist specializing in toponymy and onomastics. Dauzat, a student of Jules Gilliéron Jules Gilliéron (21 December 1854 – 26 April 1926) was a Swiss-French linguist and dialecto ...

and

Charles Rostaing Charles Rostaing (9 October 1904 – 24 April 1999) was a French linguist who specialised in toponymy.Obituar ...

, 1979, Paris, , p. 19a *''Ecolisina'' and ''Aquilisima'' in 511 *''Ecolisna'' in the 6th century *''Egolisma'' *''Egolisina'' in the 10th century *''Equalisma'', ''Engolma'', ''Egolesma'', and ''Engolisma'' *''Engolesme'' at the end of the 12th century. The absence of any convincing explanation of the origin of the name of the city has led to several attempts to fit etymological explanations unrelated to the well documented old forms and phonetically unlikely: *It came from ''incolumissima'' meaning "very safe and healthy," but there is no trace of an in the most ancient forms and no trace of a ieither. *It was an alteration of ''in collisnā'' meaning "on the hill" but a toponym is never formed from the Latin preposition ''in''. As for the French word ''colline'' (hill), it was borrowed from the Italian ''collina'' at the time of 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 ide ...

(attested for the first time in 1555). In addition the suffix ''-isnā'' was not used to produce derivations from Latin words and it is doubtful that it even exists. Finally, independent alterations of regular phonetic changes occur as a result of analogy or more precisely of popular etymology: that is to say analogy with other similar and frequent used names in the region or an attempt to connect the toponym to a term that makes sense. It is clear that the old forms of Angoulême are mostly obscure. Some hypotheses have been advanced with a stronger basis: *It is possible to recognize the suffix ''-isma'' in some of the oldest forms which represents an evolution of the Gallic suffix ''-isama'' (usually a superlative mark) which is found in the name of the Gallic divinity ''

Belisama Belisama (Gaulish ''Belesama''; epigraphically ) is a Celtic goddess. She was identified by Roman commentators with Minerva by ''interpretatio romana''. Name The Gaulish theonym ''Belesama'' has been traditionally interpreted as meaning 'the ...

'' and very common in toponymy in toponymic types such as Blesme,

Bellême Bellême () is a commune in the Orne department in northwestern France. The musicologist Guillaume André Villoteau (1759–1839) was born in Bellême, as was Aristide Boucicaut (1810-1877), owner of ''Le'' ''Bon Marché'', the world's first depar ...

, etc. including changes in the final ''-esme, -ême'' which is similar to Angoulême.Xavier Delamarre also cited ''Uxisama'' "very high" giving

Exmes Exmes is a former commune in the Orne department in north-western France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Gouffern en Auge.Huismes Huismes () is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Indre-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 272 communes of the Indre-et-Loire department of France. The commune ...

, etc. and ''*Lētisamā'' "very grey" giving Louesme ( Côte-d'Or, ''Leesma'' in 1101), Lesme (Saône-et-loire)Xavier Delamarre, ''Dictionary of the Gallic language'', éditions Errance, Paris, 2001, p. 199,329, . Article uxellos and -leto In this context the first element would be ''Icul- / Ecol-'' an unknown pre-Latin element. *The identification of the primitive form ''Eculisna'' then alternating the old forms ''-isna'' and ''-isma'' led Ernest Nègre to prefer the first with ''-isna''. The first element would be ''Ecul-''. According to him, we can neither affirm the Celticity of these two elements nor their meaning. The alteration in ''*Angulisma'' was caused by the attraction of the Germanic personal name ''Angelisma'' whose existence was confirmed by Marie-Thérèse Morlet. *''Iculisma / Ecolisma'' would consist of a Gallic radical ''eco'' meaning "water", followed by the suffix ''-lisima'' meaning "relates to". ''Iculisma'' would be "well-watered".Jean-Marie Cassagne and Stéphane Seguin, ''Origin of names of towns and villages of Charente'', Jean-Michel Bordessoules, 1998, 311 pages, p. 15 and 16, Xavier Delamarre analysed the element ''Eco-'' to come from ''Equoranda'' (or ''Egoranda'') as the origin of many names in France and considers that the element ''ico / equo-'' was not Celtic. At the time of 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 ...

the city was known by the transient name of ''Montagne-Charente''. *The district of Bussatte takes its name from the Low Latin ''buxetta / buxettum'' which means "place planted with boxwood" equivalent to '' Boissay'' in the langue d'oïl. *The district of l'Houmeau meaning "small elm" or "abalone". The term is probably derived from Low Latin ''ulmellum''. *Sillac probably comes from Low Latin ''Sīliācum'' meaning that the village was built around the property (suffix ''-ācum'') of a Gallo-Roman named ''Sīlius''.

History

Antiquity

The history of the city is not very well known before the Roman period: it is simply known that the plateau was occupied by an oppidum, traces of which were found during excavations in the Saint-Martial cemetery under the name ''Iculisma''. Its currency was Lemovice. Ang musarcheo7b

The town was not located on major roads and was considered by the poet Ausonius as a small town. No Roman monuments have been found but it benefited from the ''

Pax Romana The Pax Romana (Latin for 'Roman peace') is a roughly 200-year-long timespan of Roman history which is identified as a period and as a golden age of increased as well as sustained Roman imperialism, relative peace and order, prosperous stabilit ...

'' and from trade on the river. The town had a prosperous period at the end of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

. The rocky promontory overlooking the Charente high and over the Anguienne high formed a strategic position. It was raised to the rank of capital of ''civitas'' (at the end of the 3rd or 4th centuries) and the first fortress dates from the end of the Roman Empire. The rampart called Bas-Empire which surrounds 27 hectares of land was maintained until the 13th century. The network of

Roman roads Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Re ...

were then reorganized to link the town with the surrounding cities of

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 prefectu ...

, Saintes, Poitiers, Limoges, and Périgueux. The city of ''Haut-Empire'' remained unknown for a long time. Recent excavations have provided details on the power of the Roman city. A well dug in an early era shows that the water table was very high. A large thermal spa complex was found under the courthouse which is usually related to water supply through an aqueduct. The first bishop of Angoulême was Saint Ausone of Angoulême in the 3rd century. The administrative importance of the city was strengthened by the implementation of a County in the 6th century with Turpion (or Turpin) (839–863), adviser to

Charles the Bald Charles the Bald (french: Charles le Chauve; 13 June 823 – 6 October 877), also known as Charles II, was a 9th-century king of West Francia (843–877), king of Italy (875–877) and emperor of the Carolingian Empire (875–877). After a se ...

. However, the town was always attached to the various kingdoms of Aquitaine and the end of antiquity for the city was in 768, when

Pepin the Short the Short (french: Pépin le Bref; – 24 September 768), also called the Younger (german: Pippin der Jüngere), was King of the Franks from 751 until his death in 768. He was the first Carolingian to become king. The younger was the son of ...

defeated Hunald II and linked it to the Frankish kingdom. In June 2019, archeologists discovered a prehistoric stone with an engraving of a horse and other animals near Angoulême station. The

Palaeolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός '' palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...

stone plate is estimated to be about 12,000 years old.

Middle Ages

When held by the

Visigoths The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is k ...

, the city followed the Arian version of Christianity and was besieged for the first time by Clovis in 507 after Vouillé then taken in 508; "miraculously" according to Gregory of Tours and Ademar of Chabannes. During the battle, however, Clovis was seriously wounded in the leg - probably a fracture. The fact is reported by tradition and on a wall of a tower from the 2nd century a leg is carved called the "leg of Clovis". Tour clovis detail

During his stay in Angoulême, after putting the garrison to the sword, Clovis pulled down the old Visigothic cathedral dedicated to Saint-Saturnin to build a new one bearing the name of Saint-Pierre. All that remains of the original building are two carved marble capitals that frame the bay of the axis in the

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...

of the present cathedral. In the 7th century Saint Cybard stayed secluded in a cave beneath the extension to the north wall of Angoulême called Green Garden which caused the creation of the first abbey: the Abbey of Saint-Cybard, then created the first abbey for women: the Abbey of Saint-Ausone where the tomb of the first bishop of the city is located. In 848 Angoulême was sacked by the

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

chief Hastein. In 896 or 930 the city suffered another attack from invading Vikings but this time the Vikings faced an effective resistance.

Guillaume I William Longsword (french: Guillaume Longue-Épée, nrf, Willâome de lon Espee, la, Willermus Longa Spata, on, Vilhjálmr Langaspjót; c. 893 – 17 December 942) was the second ruler of Normandy, from 927 until his assassination in 942.Det ...

, third Count of Angoulême, at the head of his troops made them surrender in a decisive battle. During this engagement, he split open to the waist Stonius, the Norman chief, with a massive blow together with his helmet and breastplate. It was this feat that earned him the name ''Taillefer'', which was borne by all his descendants until Isabella of Angoulême who was also known as Isabelle Taillefer, the wife of King

John of England John (24 December 1166 – 19 October 1216) was King of England from 1199 until his death in 1216. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of the Angevin ...

. The title was withdrawn from the descendants on more than one occasion by Richard Coeur-de-Lion then the title passed to King John of England at the time of his marriage to Isabella of Angoulême, daughter of Count Aymer of Angoulême. After becoming a widow, Isabella subsequently married Hugh X of Lusignan in 1220, and the title was passed to the Lusignan family, counts of Marche. On the death of

Hugh XIII

Hugh XIII of Lusignan, Hugh VIII of La Mar ...

in 1302 without issue, the County of Angoulême passed his possessions to the crown of France. In 1236

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

communities in

Anjou Anjou may refer to: Geography and titles France *County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou **Count of Anjou, title of nobility *Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France **Duke ...

and Poitou, particularly Bordeaux and Angoulême were attacked by crusaders. 500

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

chose conversion and over 3000 were massacred. Pope Gregory IX, who originally had called the crusade, was outraged about this brutality and criticized the clergy for not preventing it. From the 10th to the 13th centuries the counts of Angoulême, the Taillefer, then the Lusignan strengthened the defences of the city and widened it to encompass the district of Saint-Martial. In 1110, Bishop Girard II ordered the construction of the present cathedral.

The commune charter

On 18 May 1204 a charter was signed by King John of England to make official the creation of the commune of Angoulême. The King "grants to residents of Angoulême to keep the freedoms and customs of their fair city and defend their possessions and rights". The city celebrated their 800th anniversary throughout 2004.

The Hundred Years War

In 1360 the city, like all of Angoumois, passed into the hands of the

Plantagenet The House of Plantagenet () was a royal house which originated from the lands of Anjou in France. The family held the English throne from 1154 (with the accession of Henry II at the end of the Anarchy) to 1485, when Richard III died in b ...

English with the Treaty of Brétigny. From 16 to 22 October 1361, John Chandos, Lieutenant of

King Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring r ...

of England and the Constable of Aquitaine responsible for implementing the Treaty particularly in Angoumois, took possession of the city, its castles, and the "mostier" (monastery) of Saint-Pierre. He received oaths of allegiance to the King of England from the main personalities of the city. The English were, however, expelled in 1373 by the troops of Charles V who granted the town numerous privileges. The County of Angoulême was given to Louis d'Orléans who was the brother of King Charles VI in 1394 and it then passed to his son Jean d'Orléans (1400–1467), the grandfather of Marguerite de Navarre and

François I 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 once ...

. The ''Good Count'' Jean of Angoulême greatly expanded the County castle after his return from English captivity in the middle of the 15th century.

The modern era

Angoulême, the seat of the County of Angoumois, came into the possession of a branch of the family of Valois from which came François I, King of France from 1515 to 1547 who was born in Cognac in 1494. In 1524 the Italian navigator

Giovanni da Verrazzano Giovanni da Verrazzano ( , , often misspelled Verrazano in English; 1485–1528) was an Italian ( Florentine) explorer of North America, in the service of King Francis I of France. He is renowned as the first European to explore the Atlanti ...

returned from the Indies. He told François I he had discovered a new territory that he named New Angoulême in his honour. This area later became New Amsterdam then New York. The duchy, now crown land, thereafter was passed on within the ruling house of France. One of its holders was Charles of Valois, the "natural" (or illegitimate) son of Charles IX. The last duke of Angoulême was Louis-Antoine (died 1844), eldest son of Charles X of France. John Calvin, the promoter of

Protestantism Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

and friend of Jean du Tillet the archdeacon of Angoulême, was forced to flee Paris in 1533 and took refuge in Angoulême in the caves of Rochecorail at Trois-Palis. He wrote some of his '' Institutes of the Christian Religion'' there which first edition was published in Latin in

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (B ...

in 1536. Angoulême was affected by the Revolt of the Pitauds peasant revolt: in 1541, the gabelle (salt tax) was imposed on Saintonge and Angoumois. These provinces did not pay the tax on salt. The revolt broke out around Angoulême and farmers from the surrounding countryside took the city in July 1548 During the first

wars of religion A religious war or a war of religion, sometimes also known as a holy war ( la, sanctum bellum), is a war which is primarily caused or justified by differences in religion. In the modern period, there are frequent debates over the extent to wh ...

the city took up arms: it was reconquered in 1563 by Montpensier. In 1565 Charles IX passed through the city during his royal tour of France (1564–1566) accompanied by the court. In October 1568 the city was taken by the Protestants under Coligny. Henry III was, in his infancy, the Duke of Angoulême. He left an unflattering description: "The streets of Engolesme are twisted, houses are disordered, the walls built out of various kinds of masonry which show that it was built several times and often taken and ruined" In 1588 the mayor of Angoulême, François Normand Lord of Puygrelier, was ordered by Henri III to arrest the Duke of Épernon, governor of Angoumois. He led the assault, was repelled, and died on 10 August 1588. In 1619

Marie de Médicis Marie de' Medici (french: link=no, Marie de Médicis, it, link=no, Maria de' Medici; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV of France of the House of Bourbon, and Regent of the Kingdom ...

escaped and was received by the Duke of Épernon, governor of Angoumois. At that time the castle was the residence of the governors.

French Revolution

During the French Revolution the city was called ''Mountagne-Charente''. The first tree of liberty was planted on 5 July 1792.

World War II

DUPUY PILS 55 - ANGOULEME - La Place des Halles centrales

SJS 81 - ANGOULEME - Eglise et Faubourg Saint-Ausonne

On 24 June 1940, the 2nd Verfügungstruppe division (special intervention troops) Das Reich supported by other units of the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

arrived in Angoulême. These troops took prisoners and neutralized the many refugee French soldiers in the city. Their number is estimated between 10 and 20 thousand. They were released in the following days. The Das Reich division, which became tragically famous in 1944 during the Battle of Normandy, continued their "lightning war" by quickly moving to the Spanish border to quickly set the line of demarkation to cut France in two. Angoulême was located in the

occupied zone Military occupation, also known as belligerent occupation or simply occupation, is the effective military control by a ruling power over a territory that is outside of that power's sovereign territory.Eyāl Benveniśtî. The international law ...

under German authority and was the seat of the ''Feld Kommandatur''. The border with the free zone, colloquially called the ''zone nono'' (non-occupied) passed about east of Angoulême through the Forest of Braconne and split the department in two. On 20 August 1940 a convoy of Spanish Republicans were sent from Angoulême: convoy 927. This was the first convoy of the history of Deportation in Europe. Men over the age of 13 were sent to the

Mauthausen Mauthausen was a Nazi concentration camp on a hill above the market town of Mauthausen, Upper Austria, Mauthausen (roughly east of Linz), Upper Austria. It was the main camp of a group with List of subcamps of Mauthausen, nearly 100 further ...

camp where very few survived; women and children were sent to Franco. These refugees were gathered in camps of "Combe aux Loups" at

Ruelle-sur-Touvre Ruelle-sur-Touvre is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France. Population International relations The commune has been twinned with Amstetten, Lower Austria since 1972 and Banbridge in Northern Ireland since 1994. See also ...

and "Alliers" in Angoulême. It also served as a concentration camp for Gypsies until June 1946. On 21 October 1941 the young Gontran Labrégère, who tried with his friend Jean Pierre Rivière to set fire to a train carrying straw and munitions in Angoulême railway station, was shot by the occupiers. This was the first of a long list of 98 resistance fighters or hostages from Charente. In 1942 Mayor Guillon was dismissed and accused of belonging to an organisation outlawed by the Vichy regime. He was replaced by a notable industrialist, Pallas. On 8 October 1942, 387 people of Jewish origin were arrested and deported to Auschwitz. Only eight of them ever returned. On 19 March 1944 allied bombing caused widespread damage and one casualty at the National Explosives factory. On 15 June and 14 August 1944, the railway station was the target of American Flying Fortresses that dumped a carpet of bombs with little damage to the Germans but killing 242 civilians, destroying 400 houses, and caused 5,000 disaster victims in l'Éperon, l'Houmeau, Madeleine, and Grand-Font districts. At the end of August 1944 the Elster column, which was composed of the remains of various German units and the

Indische Legion , image = Flag of the Indian Legion.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = Flag of the Indian Legion , country = , allegiance = Adolf ...

, passed through the city without incident and withdrew. Various units of FFI from the department and reinforcements from

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 ...

then began the encirclement of the city. On the evening of 31 August an attack was launched, putting to flight the remnants of the German garrison. They fortunately did not have an opportunity to reorganize the defence of the city using the numerous and formidable fortifications erected for this purpose. On the night of 31 August to 1 September the city was liberated and a Liberation Committee with a new prefect was installed. This attack, however, resulted in 51 casualties among the different units involved: Maquis de Bir Hacheim, Groupe Soleil, SSS (Special Section for Sabotage), etc. A museum in the commune is devoted to the Resistance and the deportations of Jewish and political prisoners. A statue near the station commemorates the deportations to the concentration camps. The survivors of

Operation Frankton Operation Frankton was a commando raid on ships in the German occupied French port of Bordeaux in southwest France during the Second World War. The raid was carried out by a small unit of Royal Marines known as the Royal Marines Boom Patrol ...

, notable for their daring raid by canoe on the German

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

base at Bordeaux, made their escape across country to a safe house at Ruffec just north of Angoulême. This is now the site of a shop featuring British goods. The Monument to the Resistance is in

Chasseneuil Chasseneuil () is a commune in the Indre department in central France.Commune de Cha ...

to the east.

Postwar history

After the war, the city underwent a major expansion of its suburbs. First Grand Font and Bel-Air, following the MRU reconstruction program for war damage of the area around the station which was bombed in 1944. Then in the 1960s the districts of Basseau (ZAC) and the Grande-Garenne were built and then there was the creation of Priority Urban Zones (ZUPs) at Ma Campagne in the 1970s. Gradually industries moved into more spacious industrial zones created in the peripheral communes between 1959 and 1975: *Sillac-Rabion (1959) *les Agriers (1964) *ZI No. 3: Gond-Pontouvre and L'Isle-d'Espagnac (1967) * Nersac (early 1970s) *Combe at Saint-Yrieix (1980) Urbanisation also affected the peripheral communes with housing estates at

Soyaux Soyaux ( or ) is a commune in the Charente department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France. Population Notable people * Bruno Périer (born 1966), former professional footballer Sights * Sentier botanique de Soyaux Se ...

and Ruelle-sur-Touvre and the agglomeration became one of the largest cities in the south-west. In 1972, the city signed a "pilot city" contract with the State ( DATAR, represented by

Albin Chalandon Albin Chalandon (; 11 June 1920 – 29 July 2020) was a French politician and minister. Between 1968 and 1972, he was Minister of Public Works. And from 1986 until 1988, he was Minister of Justice. Between 1967 and 1968, he was a member of the ...

), which allowed the city to make large scale public works - e.g. the small ring road (bridge and Rue Saint-Antoine, Boulevard Bretagne, Tunnel of Gâtine) penetrating Ma Campagne and called the way to Europe, the ZUPs at Ma Campagne, the Saint-Martial town centre, underground parking at Bouillaud and Saint-Martial, Montauzier indoor swimming pools at Ma Campagne, a pedestrianized street, a one-way traffic plan with computerized management of traffic lights (Angoulême is one of the first cities in France with Bordeaux which has the Gertrude computerized system called ''Philibert'' in Angoulême), STGA urban transport (ten routes with flexible buses), development of Bouillaud square, Conservatory of Music. In 1989 after defeat in the municipal elections, the PS deputy mayor, Jean-Michel Boucheron left a hole of 164 million francs in the finances of the city and a debt of 1.2 billion francs. This deficit has burdened the finances of the city and long served as justification for the non-involvement in the completion of public works. The small ring road (the southwest quarter - i.e. the Aquitaine Boulevard, a second bridge over the Charente, and the connection to the ''way of Europe'') was completed in 1995. Following the construction of the Nautilis swimming complex at Saint-Yrieix by the urban community, the town of Angoulême closed three swimming pools in 2001 (Montauzier, Ma Campagne and the Bourgines summer pool).

Heraldry

;Development of the coat of arms *The first known blazon was: ''Azure Semé-de-lis of Or, a city gate with two towers of argent debruised by the whole''. *Under Philip V in 1317: The Two Towers became three. *Under Charles VI in 1381 are: ''Azure Semé-de-lis of Or, a bend compony of Argent and Or debruised by the whole for brisure''. The door at tower three encloses an outdoor ornament. *Under Charles VII in 1452 the brisure changes for: ''a label of three points, with the middle pointed''. *In the 16th century, the door with two towers reappears surmounted by a fleur de lys of gold. *In 1850 a star replaced the fleur de lys which reappeared in 1855. *At an unknown date the crown was added.

Administration

Municipality

List of Successive Mayors since 1944

Cantons

Angoulême is divided over three cantons: * Angoulême-1, which comprises the commune of Fléac and part of Angoulême * Angoulême-2, which comprises the commune of L'Isle-d'Espagnac and part of Angoulême * Angoulême-3, which comprises the commune of

and part of Angoulême

Intercommunality

The ''Urban Community of Greater Angoulême'' or ''Grand Angoulême'' includes 16 communes: Angoulême, Fleac, Gond-Pontouvre,

, Linars, L'Isle-d'Espagnac,

Magnac-sur-Touvre Magnac-sur-Touvre () is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France. Population See also *Communes of the Charente department The following is a list of the 364 communes of the Charente department of France. The communes coo ...

Mornac Mornac () is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France. Population See also *Communes of the Charente department The following is a list of the 364 communes of the Charente department of France. The communes cooperate in t ...

, Nersac, Puymoyen,

, Saint-Michel, Saint-Saturnin, Saint-Yrieix-sur-Charente, Soyaux, and Touvre. The population of the conurbation was 103,501 inhabitants in 2006 (102,368 in 1999).

Budget and taxation

Taxation is at a rate of 40.20% on buildings, 71.94% on undeveloped land, and 18.43% for the housing tax (2007 figures). The urban community levies 19.20% business tax.

Urban development

The Champ de Mars is the central square of the city and has had an underground shopping arcade since September 2007. The eastern ring road was opened in 2004 (2010 for the final section) which opened up several districts. The deviation of the N10 which has bypassed the city since 1973 has formed a western ring road since 2004 when the initial Fléac-Linars project was abandoned. Rehabilitation operations for collective housing are underway as part of the government Operation for Urban Renewal. The districts of Grande Garenne, Basseau and Ma Campagne were combined in a program of urban regeneration. File:Angouleme hv marche.JPG, The historic centre with the city hall and the market File:Angouleme hv rue pietonne.JPG, Pedestrian shopping area in the centre File:Houmeau Angoulême.JPG, The port of l'Houmeau and, in the background, the town centre of Angoulême. File:Angouleme grande garenne.jpg, District of Grande-Garenne File:Ang grandfont.JPG, District of Grand-Font File:Angoulême - Halles.JPG, Les Halles File:Angoulême Hôtel de Bardines 2012.jpg, The Bardines Hotel

Movies and TV series shot in Angoulême

*''Blanche and Marie'' by Jacques Renard with Miou-Miou and Sandrine Bonnaire, shot in Angoulême and Rouillac, released in 1985 *''The Child of the Dawn'' with Thierry Lhermitte filmed at Angoulême and Cognac *''SOS 18'' shot in and around Angoulême *''Father and Mayor'' filmed in the communes of Angoulême and

(in the series, Angoulême is called Ville-Grand) *''My son anyway'' by Williams Crépin with Clémentine Célarié in 2004. *''And you About Love?'' by Lola Doillon, 2007 *''

Mammuth ''Mammuth'' is a 2010 French drama film directed by Benoît Delépine and Gustave de Kervern. It was nominated for the Golden Bear at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival. For her role, Yolande Moreau was nominated for Best Actress at t ...

'' by Benoit Delépine and

Gustave Kervern Gustave Kervern (born 27 August 1962), also known as Gustave de Kervern and Gustave K/Vern, is a French actor, director and screenwriter. He is best known for his collaboration with Benoît Delépine. Life and career In 2004 he wrote, directed, ...

*''To the four winds'' by Jacques Doillon *''Dying of love'' by Josée Dayan, with Muriel Robin *''At the bottom of the ladder'' by Arnaud Mercadier with Vincent Elbaz,

Claude Brasseur Claude Brasseur (15 June 1936 – 22 December 2020) was a French actor. Life and career Claude Brasseur was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine as Claude Pierre Espinasse, the son of actor Pierre Brasseur and actress Odette Joyeux. He was the godson of E ...

Bernadette Lafont Bernadette Lafont (28 October 1938 – 25 July 2013) was a French actress who appeared in more than 120 feature films. She has been considered "the face of French New Wave". In 1999 she told ''The New York Times'' her work was "the motor of my ex ...

, and

Helena Noguerra Helena Noguerra (18 May 1969) is a Belgian actress, singer and writer. Career Noguerra was born in Brussels, Belgium. Her songs have been used in commercials and television programmes such as ''Lunettes noires pour nuits blanches'' by Thie ...

*''Victoire Bonnot'' with Valerie Damidot and Shirley Bousquet filmed at the Saint-Paul Secondary School *''The Lies'' by Fabrice Cazeneuve with Hippolyte Girardot and Marilyne Canto, filmed in Angoulême and Puymoyen, released in 2010 *'' Code Lyoko Evolution'', filmed mid-2012 at the Lycée Guez de Balzac *'' Le Grand Soir'' filmed at Angoulême and the ZAC at Montagnes by Benoit Delépine and

with

Albert Dupontel Albert Dupontel (; born 11 January 1964) is a French actor, film director and screenwriter. Following his father's path, he studied medicine but eventually switched to theater, disillusioned by hospital life. He started his career as a stand-up c ...

and

Benoît Poelvoorde Benoît Poelvoorde (, ; born 22 September 1964) is a Belgian actor and comedian. Early life His mother was a grocer and his father a driver, who died when Poelvoorde was still a minor. He attended the Jesuit Boarding School of Godinne before ...

2012. *''Indiscretions'' by Josée Dayan with Muriel Robin, filmed during the summer of 2013 in Angoulême, Saint-Même-les-Carrières and Bassac, released in November 2013. *'' The French Dispatch'' - '' Wes Andersons 10th film was shot in the area between 2018 and 2019.

Twin towns – sister cities

Angoulême is twinned with: * Bury, England, United Kingdom (1959) *

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; nds, Hilmessen, Hilmssen; la, Hildesia) is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of the ...

, Germany (1965) * Vitoria Gasteiz, Spain (1967) * Saguenay, Canada (1969) * Gelendzhik, Russia (1977) * Ségou, Mali (1984) * Turda, Romania (1994) *

Hoffman Estates Hoffman Estates is a village in Illinois, United States. The village is located primarily in Cook County, with a small section in Kane County. It is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 52,530. The village now serves ...

, United States (1996) * Chaves, Portugal (2017)

Demography

Demographic classification

By population Angoulême is by far the largest city in Charente with 41,711 inhabitants on 1 January 2018. With a communal area of 2,185 hectares, the population density is 1,909 inhabitants per km², making it the most densely populated city in Charente. In 2018, the urban unit of Angoulême, which includes eighteen communes, totaled 109,395 inhabitants. It is the seventh most populous urban unit of

, and extends over from north to south. Its functional area has 179,758 inhabitants (2018), and is composed of 94 communes in the impact zone of the city.

Demographic changes

In 2017 Angoulême had 41,740 inhabitants, down 13% from its largest population in 1962, and down 2.2% compared to 2007. The commune was 172nd in size at the national level, while it was at 145th in 1999, and 1st at the departmental level out of 366 communes.

Distribution of age groups

Percentage Distribution of Age Groups in Angoulême and Charente Department in 2017 Source: INSEEÉvolution et structure de la population en 2017: Commune d'Angoulême (16015)
/ref>

Economy

Angoulême is a centre of the paper-making and printing industry, with which the town has been connected since the 14th century. Papermaking is favoured because of the uniform temperature and volume of the water year-round, partly due to the river Touvre, which joins the

at Angoulême. The Touvre is the second largest river with an underground source in France after the Sorgue ( Fontaine-de-Vaucluse). Gondp foulpougne1

The Touvre emerges as a full-blown river from the head of the valley at Ruelle. A trout fishery is located at the source and a pumping station supplies the drinking water needs of Angoulême. Most of the paper mills are situated on the banks of watercourses in the neighbourhood of the town. Cardboard for packaging, as well as fine

vellum Vellum is prepared animal skin or membrane, typically used as writing material. Parchment is another term for this material, from which vellum is sometimes distinguished, when it is made from calfskin, as opposed to that made from other anim ...

for correspondence, have been produced in quantity. The best known export is Rizla cigarette roll-up paper, a combination of ''riz'' (rice paper) and LaCroix, after Monsieur LaCroix the founder. ''Le Nil'' is another local brand of roll-up paper, named not after the Nile in Egypt but after a small tributary of the Charente. The Le Nil paper-mill is now the Paper Museum. Paper-making in the town has been in decline. The economy of the modern town also is supplemented by annual tourist events and festivals. For example, the printers and paper-makers, whose industry relied on intricate machinery, became skilled mechanics and among the first to become fascinated with the motor car in the late 19th century. Motor trials were held regularly, starting on the long straight road through Puymoyen, now a suburb. Monsieur LaCroix (of RIZLA+) was a celebrated motorcycle racer. The Paris-Madrid road race of 1903, notorious for its cancellation due to numerous deaths, passed through Angoulême. Marcel, one of the brothers

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...

, was one of the victims. The place of his death is marked by a memorial on road RN10 to Poitiers. The town has been closely associated with motor trials and racing. The Circuit des Remparts (see below) is held annually, one of the last such street-racing course in France, together with Pau (and Monaco). In addition to local heroes, internationally known racing drivers, such as Juan Manuel Fangio, José Froilán González, Jean-Pierre Wimille,

Pierre Veyron Pierre Veyron (1 October 1903 – 2 November 1970) was a French Grand Prix motor racing driver active from 1933 through 1953. Career Pierre Veyron enrolled at university to study engineering. Veyron's friend, Albert Divo, convinced Veyron to take ...

and Maurice Trintignant, have been regular participants. The cars which they drove frequently are presented at the modern event. The hotel and restaurant trade receives a considerable boost from the races. Subsidiary industries, such as the manufacture of machinery, electric motors and wire fabric, are of considerable importance. Angoulême is the most inland navigable port on the Charente River. The traditional river boat is the Gabare. Iron and copper founding, brewing and tanning also continue. The manufacture of gunpowder, confectionery, heavy iron goods, gloves, boots and shoes (including the traditional ''pantoufle'' carpet slippers) and cotton goods are also important. There is wholesale and retail trade in wine, cognac and building-stone.

Transportation

The new high-speed rail link between Tours and Bordeaux bypasses the town centre to the west, but with a link to

Angoulême station Angoulême is a railway station located in Angoulême, Charente, south-western France. The station was opened in 1852 and is located on the Paris–Bordeaux railway, Saintes-Angoulême railway and Limoges-Angoulême railway. The train services ...

from both the north and south. It opened in July 2017. Direct

journeys from Paris

Gare Montparnasse Gare Montparnasse (; Montparnasse station), officially Paris-Montparnasse, one of the six large Paris railway termini, is located in the 14th and 15th arrondissements. The station opened in 1840, was rebuilt in 1852 and relocated in 1969 to ...

take just over two hours. The Paris Bordeaux railway passes through a tunnel beneath the town and is due for large-scale refurbishment to improve travel time. Angoulême - Cognac International Airport is situated NE of the city centre in Champniers, just off the N10. The runway can accommodate Boeing 737s, and a new restaurant and shops were added in 2008. However Ryanair stopped its Angoulême-Stansted service in 2010. Air France used to operate a service to Lyon. There are currently no regular flights to/from Angoulême airport. Local Buses – The city bus system is run b
STGA

Culture and heritage

Angoulême and Angoumois country together are classified as a City of Art and History. In place of its ancient

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere ...

s, Angoulême is encircled by boulevards above the old city walls, known as the ''Remparts'', from which fine views may be obtained in all directions. Within the town the streets are often narrow. Apart from the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

and the ''

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

'', the architecture is of little interest to purists. However, the "old town" has been preserved, maintained and largely reserved for pedestrians. It has a cobbled restaurant quarter, with several galleries and boutiques. Angoulême contains a very large number of buildings and structures which are registered as historical monuments. Below are listed some of the most interesting sites.

Civil heritage

*The Town Hall (13th century) was designed by

Paul Abadie Paul Abadie (9 November 1812 – 3 August 1884) was a French architect and building restorer. He is considered a central representative of French historicism. He was the son of architect Paul Abadie Sr. Abadie worked on the restoration of Not ...

and is a handsome 19th-century structure. It has preserved and incorporated two 13th-century towers, Lusignan and Valois, from the Castle of the

Counts of Angoulême Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York ...

on the site on which it was built. It contains museums of paintings and

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsc ...

. *The Ramparts (4th century).Ministry of Culture, Mérimée The ramparts form a balcony overlooking the Charente. *The Market building (1886) is made of architectural glass and iron of Baltard type. *The Palace of Justice was built on an old convent at the end of the 19th century by Paul Abadie's father. *The Municipal Theatre has a superb façade. *The College Jules Verne, a former deanery, it has preserved the old chapel with stained glass and carved woodwork in the music room and a vaulted chapel with stone keystones and stained glass - visible from the Rue de Beaulieu - which has become the CDI. *The Guez de Balzac School built by Paul Abadie father and son. There are very many old houses: *The Maison Saint-Simon in Rue de la Cloche-Verte (16th century) built in the Renaissance style. *The Hotel de Bardines at 79 Rue de Beaulieu (18th century) is attributed to the Angoulême architect Jean-Baptiste Michel Vallin de la Mothe. The building is impressive in size. *The Hotel Montalembert *The House called Archers *The Hôtel Mousnier-Longpré at 24 Rue Friedland (12th century) was rebuilt in the 15th century. It has remarkable façades on the Rue de l'Évêché, Rue de Friedland, and the courtyard. *A Hotel Particular described in ''

Illusions perdues ''Illusions perdues'' — in English, ''Lost Illusions'' — is a serial novel written by the French writer Honoré de Balzac between 1837 and 1843. It consists of three parts, starting in provincial France, thereafter moving to Paris, and final ...

'' (Lost Illusions) by Honoré de Balzac as that of Madame de Bargeton. *An Ancient Portal at 59 Rue du Minage (17th century) *An Ancient Portal at 61 Rue du Minage (16th century) ;Places (Squares) in Old Angoulême Angouleme place du Palet

*The Place du Minage with its fountain from the Second Empire and its benches has a Mediterranean flair in the heart of the old town. In the 14th and the 19th centuries there was intense commercial activity. *The Place Henri Dunant. Named after the founder of the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

, it now borders the Gabriel Fauré conservatory, formerly the Saint-Louis College then a police station. *The Place New-York. This square, formerly called ''the Park'', was installed in the 18th century in the first real town planning project. It has remained a promenade and a venue for various events. In 1956 the square changed its name again. The City Council decided to call it the ''Place New York'', in memory of the journey by

in the service of

who, in 1524, named the site of the present New York: New Angoulême. *The Place Beaulieu''. Located at the western end of the plateau and the old city, it offers a vast panorama to passers-by and has long been a pleasant place to walk. It borders the imposing Guez de Balzac School on the site of an ancient abbey. *The Place Bouillaud and the Place de l'Hotel de Ville. In addition to the City Hall there is also (in front of the entrance to the City Hall) an art nouveau façade. *The Place Francis Louvel. Formerly called ''du mûrier'', it was and remains one of the busiest places in the old town. Formerly the garden of a convent until the 16th century, it was embellished in the 18th and 19th centuries with new buildings and a fountain. The Palace of Justice is there. The place changed its name in 1946 to take the name of ''Francis Louvel'' - a resistance fighter shot by the Germans in 1944. *The Place du Palet. This site occupies a vast space which, in the past, was in front of the main gate of the old city and for three centuries housed an imposing hall. The site was redeveloped in the 1980s. *The Place du Général Resnier. Tours of the town include the ''murs peints'', various walls painted in street-art cartoon style, a feature of Angoulême and related to its association with the ''bande dessinée'', the comic strip. A statue has been erected to Hergé, creator of '' The Adventures of Tintin''. The attractive covered market ''Les Halles'', on the site of the old jail, was restored and refurbished in 2004 and is a central part of city life. In 2009 the National Council of Cities and Villages in Bloom of France awarded four flowers to the commune in the competition for cities and villages in bloom. Angoulême1.5.JPG, Watchtower in the old Épernon wall Ang hv6.JPG, City Hall France - Charente - Angoulême - Rue piétonne - 92.jpg, The Pedestrian shopping area in 1992 Angoulême Hôt Montalembert Portail 2012.jpg, The 19th-century gate on the Hotel Montalembert Angoulême Palais de justice 2012.jpg, The Palace of Justice Angoulême Théâtre façade 2012.jpg, The Municipal Theatre Angoulême Lycée Guez de Balzac entrée 2012.jpg, Entrance to the Guez de Balzac school

Religious heritage

Angoulême Cathedral Angoulême Cathedral (french: Cathédrale Saint-Pierre d'Angoulême) is a Roman Catholic church in Angoulême, Charente, France. The cathedral is in the Romanesque architectural and sculptural tradition, and is the seat of the Bishop of Angoul� ...

(12th century)Ministry of Culture, Mérimée is dedicated to

Saint Peter ) (Simeon, Simon) , birth_date = , birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire , death_date = Between AD 64–68 , death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire , parents = John (or Jonah; Jona) , occupat ...

and is a church in the Romanesque style. It has undergone frequent restoration since the 12th century. It was partly rebuilt in the latter half of the 19th century by architect

. The façade, flanked by two towers with

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, f ...

s, is decorated with arcades featuring statuary and sculpture with the whole representing the " Last Judgment". The crossing is surmounted by a dome. The north

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building with ...

is topped by a fine square tower over high. The Cathedral contains a very large number of items that are registered as historical objects. *The remains of the

(13th century) at the International City of Cartoons and Images (CNBDI) *The Church of Saint-André at Rue Taillefer (12th century)Ministry of Culture, Mérimée has been rebuilt several times. The church contains a large number of items that are registered as historical objects. *A Lantern of the Dead in the cemetery of the Church of Saint André (12th century) is actually a hearth - a remnant of the old Taillefer Palace. *The old Bishop's Palace at Rue Friedland (15th century) is today the Museum of Fine Arts of Angoulême. The bishop's house contains a number of items that are registered as historical objects: **A Sarcophagus (6th century) **A Crozier: The Annunciation (13th century) **2 Croziers: The Virgin (13th century) **A Crozier: Tau (12th century) *The Hospital Chapel was the old Chapel of the Cordeliers Convent where Guez de Balzac is buried. The chapel contains several items that are registered as historical objects: **A Tapestry: Pagan Sacrifice to an Idol (18th century) **A Tapestry: Rest after the Harvest (17th century) **A Chest of Drawers (18th century) **A Painting: The Virgin and Saint Antoine of Padua (18th century) **A Painting: The Dead Christ (18th century) **A Painting: The Descent from the Cross (18th century) **A Painting: Virgin and child (17th century) **A Commemorative Plaque (1654) **A Bronze Bowl (16th century) *The Church of Saint-Jacques de Lhoumeau (1840) The church contains a Gallery Organ (18th century) which is registered as an historical object. *The Church of Saint-Martial (1849)Ministry of Culture, Mérimée in Neo-Romanesque style by

. The church contains a large number of items that are registered as historical objects. *The Church of Saint Ausone from the same period and architect. The church contains a Statue of Saint Ausone (17th century) which is registered as an historical object. *The Chapel Notre-Dame d'Obézine (or Bézines)(1895) *The Hôtel-Dieu *The old Carmelite convent Angoulême 16 Façade cathédrale 2014.JPG,

Angoulême - Cathédrale Mandorle.JPG, An Aureola on the Cathedral Ang obez4.JPG, Church of Obézine Ang stroc1.JPG, Chapel Saint-Roch Angou sacre2.JPG, Church of the Sacred Heart Ang stjac2.JPG, Church of Saint-Jacques de l'Houmeau Ang staus4.JPG, Church Saint-Ausone Ang stcyb3.JPG, Chapel Saint-Cybard Angoulême - Chapelle des Cordeliers.JPG, Chapel of Cordeliers Angoulême Cheminée Taillefer 2012.jpg, "Lantern of the dead" near the Church of Saint-André

Environmental heritage

The valley of the

upstream from Angoulême is a

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respecti ...

zone with remarkable species: 64 species of birds. Among them are species for marshland and wetland; and at Angoulême it is common to see wildfowl including

mute swan The mute swan (''Cygnus olor'') is a species of swan and a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Eurosiberia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is an introduced species in North America, home ...

, black-necked grebe, little grebe, horned grebe, great crested grebe, greylag goose, gadwall, pintail, Eurasian wigeon,

shoveler The shovelers or shovellers are four species of dabbling ducks with long, broad spatula-shaped beaks: * Red shoveler, ''Anas platalea'' * Cape shoveler, ''Anas smithii'' * Australasian shoveler, ''Anas rhynchotis'' * Northern shoveler, ''Anas ...

, garganey, teal and common pochard, tufted duck on the Charente. It is more rare to see waders. Terns and

great cormorant The great cormorant (''Phalacrocorax carbo''), known as the black shag in New Zealand and formerly also known as the great black cormorant across the Northern Hemisphere, the black cormorant in Australia, and the large cormorant in India, is a w ...

s return during periods of storms from far upstream on the river. Marquet island and the Forest of la Pudrerie have been finally cleared and will be provided to the population. Hiking trails and an old haulage road have become part of the green corridor which allows walks along the river.

Museums

* Museum of Angoulême *Museum of Paper *Museum of the Archaeological and Historical Society of Charente *Museum of Resistance and Deportation *Museum of Cartoons (CIBDI) *Decentralized branch of the Regional Contemporary Art Fund of Poitou-Charentes

Cartoons

In 1983 the Regional School of Fine Arts in Angoulême (EESI) was created with the first cartoon section in France. Angoulême is home to the ''International City of Cartoons and Images'' which registers all the comics published in France. There is also at ''la Cité'' the ''ENJMIN'' which is the first state-funded school in Europe for the key subjects of video games and interactive media. *Angoulême, known as the "City of the Image" or "Capital of Cartoons", is known for its "Painted walls" of cartoons "that punctuate the city centre.

Other cultural places

*The National Theatre *The ''Espace Carat (Exhibition and Convention Centre of Grand Angoulême - events, concerts) *La Nef (Concert Hall) *Gabriel Faure conservatory which has an auditorium and a library *The Alpha, a library currently under construction (opening scheduled for March 2014)

Schedule of festivals

End of January: Angoulême International Comics Festival, Late May: ''Musiques Métisses'' (Mixed Music), Late August: Festival of Francophone Films, September: Circuit des Remparts (Car Race), Late October: Piano en Valois, Late November: Gastronomades, Early November: The Grand Dance Festival

City of festivals

Angoulême, along with paper and printing, has long been associated with animation, illustration and the graphic arts. The Cité internationale de la Bande Dessinée et de l'Image includes an exhibition space and cinema in a converted brewery down by the river. A new museum dedicated to the motion picture opened in 2007 at the newly restored '' chais'' on opposite side of the river at Saint Cybard. The architect was Jean-François Bodin. The Angoulême International Comics Festival takes place for a week every year in January and attracts nearly a quarter of a million international visitors. Another festival, small yet influential, is FITA, held each December. FITA stands for ''Forum International des Technologies de l'Animation'', International Forum for Animation Technologies. The event was started in 1998. Some 250 to 300 French professionals from animation, effects, post-production and game development studios: SFX supervisors, head of studios, animators, technical directors, meet to share information and hear internationally renowned speakers on the latest advances and new ideas in entertainment technology. The Circuit des Remparts motor racing event, with its street circuit around the ramparts and past the Cathedral, is held the Sunday of the middle weekend in September. It is also the occasion of the world's largest gathering of pre-war Bugatti race cars, usually around 30 cars, many being examples of the legendary T35, the

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...

s of their day. British vintage and classic cars are also in attendance, most having been driven to the event. The Saturday of the "Remparts" weekend includes a tourist rally (as opposed to a speed event) for classic and sporting cars, around the Cognac area. In another international sports event, Angoulême was the site of the finish of Stages 18 and 19 (ITT) in the 2007 Tour de France. Angoulême also hosts the ''Gastronomades'' festival at Christmas, Music ''Metisse'' in May and ''Piano en Valois'' in October. A new exhibition centre (Le Parc Des Expos) and a new shopping mall at the Champ de Mars in the town centre (opening Sept/Oct 2007) are the latest additions to the town. Angoulême is the seat of a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

, a

prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

, and an assize court. Its public institutions include tribunals of first instance and of commerce, a council of trade-arbitrators, a chamber of commerce and a branch of the Bank of France. It has several lycées (including the Lycee de l'Image et du Son d'Angoulême (LISA – High School of Image and Sound)), training colleges, a school of artillery, a library and several learned societies.

Facilities and services

Education

Colleges

* Marguerite de Valois College * Anatole France College *Pierre Bodet College * Jules Michelet College *

Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the '' Voyages extra ...

College *Michèle Pallet College

Schools

* Lycée Guez-de-Balzac : general education school hosting literary CPGEs *School of Image and Sound of Angoulême (LISA): a general education high school (options cinema, theatre), BTS audiovisual and visual communication *Marguerite de Valois High School : general and technological lycée, *Charles de Coulomb High School: a general and technological education and vocational high school (industrial education) *Sillac High School: building trades vocational school *Jean Rostand School: vocational school for the fashion industry and services, *Jean-Albert Grégoire School: vocational school for careers in transport and logistics (

commune) *Oisellerie High School: agricultural college (

commune) *Saint Paul High School: A private school grouping (elementary school, middle school, and general and technological high school) *Sainte-Marthe-Chavagnes School: a private school grouping (from kindergarten to BTS, general education, technological and professional)

University

The University Centre of Charente is administratively attached to the University of Poitiers. It includes: *a Faculty of Law and Social Sciences *a Faculty of Sport Sciences *CEPE (European Centre for children's products) * University Institutes of Technology (IUT) *a departmental site of the ''Graduate School of Teaching and Education'' from the University of Poitiers

Other institutions

*Gabriel Fauré Conservatory directed by Jacques Pesi. 56 teachers, 40 disciplines, and 1,015 students in 2010 *Isfac: a training centre offering 8 BTS courses alternately as well as training for business *CNAM: a branch of the National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts *EMCA: School for film animation *EGC: School of Management and Business *CIFOP: Vocational Training Centre for the ''Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Angoulême'' ( L'Isle-d'Espagnac commune) *EIA: Engineering school by apprenticeship - CESI *ENJMIN: National School game and interactive digital media *EESI: Higher European School of Imaging *CREADOC: documentary of design

Sports

*Local

rock climbing Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically a ...

crags in such as Les Eaux-Claires, site of France's first route, by

Fred Rouhling Fred Rouhling (born 24 January 1970) is a French rock climber and boulderer, noted for creating and repeating some of the earliest grade sport climbing routes in the world, including ''Hugh'' in 1993, the first-ever French sport route. Rouhlin ...

*Sailing school, based by Éric Tabarly at the lake of Saint-Yrieix *The women's handball team was in division 1 for the 2008–2009 season. *The Angoulême CFC (ACFC) is the football club that played in the National (3rd division) in the 2003–2004 season. *TTGF is the Table Tennis Club that played in National 1 (3rd division championship of France) for the 2009–2010 season. *The SC Angoulême Rugby Club *The ACA (Angoulême Rowing Club)

Health

All medical and paramedical specialties are present. *The ''Centre hospitalier d'Angoulême'', also called the Hospital of Girac, is in the commune of Saint-Michel. *The Saint-Joseph clinic is the only remaining clinic in the commune of Angoulême. Other clinics (Victor Hugo, Sainte-Marie, Saint-Cybard, etc.) are combined on one site: the clinical centre of

Local life

Worship

Catholic worship

* Saint-Pierre Cathedral *Saint-André Church *Church of Our Lady of Obézine *Church of St. Ausone *Saint-Jacques Church of l'Houmeau *Church Saint-Martial *Church of Saint-Bernadette *Parish church of Saint-John the Baptist: the church is located on the Rue Pierre Aumaître *Church of Saint-Cybard *Church of the Sacred Heart

Markets

*The market of Halles, or ''Covered Market''. With its large roof and its late 19th-century architecture, it has been registered as an historical monument since 1993. *The Victor Hugo market *The market of Saint-Cybard *The districts of Basseau and Ma Campagne also have their markets.

Military presence

Two regiments of the French armed forces are currently garrisoned in the City: * INSIGN~1

1st Marine Infantry Regiment * The 515th '' régiment du train''. Several other military formations have been previously garrisoned in the city, including: * Insigne régimentaire du 107e régiment d'infanterie (1939)

Insigne régimentaire du 107e régiment d'infanterie (1939)

The 107th Infantry Regiment, from before 1906 for an unknown period of time and then from in 1939 to 1940 * The 21st Artillery Regiment, 1906 * The 34th Artillery Regiment, 1906 * The 41st Divisional Artillery Regiment, 1939–1940 * The 502nd Tank Regiment, 1939–1940.

Notable people

* Isabella of Angoulême (1186–1246), Queen of England as the second wife of King John *

John, Count of Angoulême John of Orléans, Count of Angoulême and of Périgord (, 26 June 1399 – 30 April 1467), was a younger son of Louis I, Duke of Orléans, and Valentina Visconti, and a grandson of Charles V of France. He was the younger brother of the noted ...

(1399–1467), grandson of King Charles V of France and grandfather of King

, buried in Saint-Pierre d'Angoulême Cathedral * Mellin de Saint-Gelais (c. 1491–1558) poet of the

, favoured by

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 ...

Margaret of Valois-Angoulême Marguerite de Navarre (french: Marguerite d'Angoulême, ''Marguerite d'Alençon''; 11 April 149221 December 1549), also known as Marguerite of Angoulême and Margaret of Navarre, was a princess of France, Duchess of Alençon and Berry, and Quee ...

(1492–1548), princess of France *

André Thevet André Thevet (; ; 1516 – 23 November 1590) was a French Franciscan priest, explorer, cosmographer and writer who travelled to the Near East and to South America in the 16th century. His most significant book was ''The New Found World, or ...

(1516–1592), explorer, cosmographer and writer * François Ravaillac (1578–1610), assassin of King Henry IV * François Garasse (1585–1631), Jesuit polemicist * Jean-Louis Guez de Balzac (1597–1654), writer *

Marc René, marquis de Montalembert Marc René, marquis de Montalembert (16 July 1714 – 29 March 1800) was a French military engineer and writer, known for his work on fortifications. Life He was born at Angoulême, and entered the French Army in 1732. He fought in the War of t ...

(1714–1800), military engineer and writer * Jean-Baptiste Vallin de la Mothe (1728–1799), court architect to

Catherine II , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...

in Russia * Charles-Augustin de Coulomb (1736–1806), military engineer and physicist * Charles Gaudichaud-Beaupré (1789–1854), botanist * Curt John Ducasse (1881–1969), philosopher *

Paul Iribe Paul Iribe (8 June 1883 – 21 September 1935) was a French illustrator and designer in the decorative arts. He worked in Hollywood during the 1920s and was Coco Chanel's lover from 1931 to his death. Early life and career Joseph Paul Iribe was b ...

(1883–1935), illustrator and designer in the decorative arts * Maurice Dumesnil (1884–1974), classical pianist * Robert Couturier (1905–2008), sculptor *

Maurice Duverger Maurice Duverger (5 June 1917 – 16 December 2014) was a French jurist, sociologist, political scientist and politician born in Angoulême, Charente. Starting his career as a jurist at the University of Bordeaux, Duverger became more and m ...

(1917–2014), jurist, sociologist, political scientist and politician * Pierre-Jean Rémy (1937–2010), writer, member of the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosop ...

Claude Arpi Claude Arpi is French-born author, journalist, historian and tibetologist born in 1949 in Angoulême who lives in Auroville, India. He is the author of several books including ''The Fate of Tibet: When Big Insects Eat Small Insects'', and several ...

(born 1949), writer, journalist, historian and French tibetologist * Dominique Bagouet (1951–1992), dancer and choreographer of

contemporary dance Contemporary dance is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in ...

* Claire Désert (born 1967), classical pianist *

Jean-Cédric Maspimby Jean-Cédric Maspimby (born 3 October 1977 in Angouleme, France) is a French footballer who played on the professional level for French Ligue 2 clubs Gueugnon, Brest, Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous ...

(born 1977), footballer *

Amandine Bourgeois Amandine Bourgeois (; born 12 June 1979, in Angoulême, Charente) is a French singer. She was the winner of the sixth edition of the French version of the ''Pop Idol'' series ''Nouvelle Star'' in 2008. On 26 July 2014, Bourgeois participated in ...

(born 1979), singer

Linked to the city

Marie Thérèse of France column, Angoulême, Charente

Saint Cybard Saint Cybard (or Eparchius, Eparque, Ybar, Ybard, Separchius, Cybar; 504 – 1 July 581) was a monk and a hermit who inhabited a cave beneath the walls of Angoulême for forty-four years. The Latin form of his name is ''Eparchius'', and it also app ...

(504–581), monk and hermit, lived and died here *

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 ...

(1494–1547), Count of Angoulême before his accession to the throne * Jean Louis de Nogaret de La Valette (1554–1642), Duke of Épernon, Governor of Angoumois, pet of King Henry III of France * Zulma Carraud (1796–1889), writer, lived here in 1830–1834 and frequently hosted Honoré de Balzac who wrote ''La Grenadière'' here in one night *

(1812–1884), architect, built the churches of Saint-Martial, St. Ausone, the school chapel, restored the old castle and turned it into the city hall, and

* Paul Valéry (1871–1945), writer and scholar, visited the ramparts where there is a plaque: "Paul VALERY stopped here on 9 December 1931 AAC ''O reward after a thought, a long look at the calm of the gods''Paul VALERY s'est arrêté ici le 9 décembre 1931 AAC "O récompense après une pensée, qu'un long regard sur le calme des dieux" * Lucien Loizeau (1879–1978), general and writer, died here *

René Olry René-Henri Olry CLH (28 June 1880 – 3 January 1944) was a French general and commander of the Army of the Alps (french: l'Armée des Alpes) during the Battle of France of World War II. Biography Early life Olry was born on 28 June 1880 in ...

(1880–1944), general and commander of the Army of the Alps, died here * François Mitterrand (1916–1996), French President (1981–1995), completed his secondary education at Saint-Paul's College of Angoulême * Lindsay Anderson (1923–1994), British film director, died here * Prince Eudes, Duke of Angoulême (born 1968)

Notes

References

External links

Official Web site

Picture of the Cathedral

Circuit des remparts

Angoulême Cricket club

Angoulême on Géoportail
National Geographic Institute (IGN) website
''Angoulesme'' on the 1750 Cassini Map
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Angouleme Communes of Charente Prefectures in France Papermaking in France Angoumois Cities in Nouvelle-Aquitaine