Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille

Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille
region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Charente-Maritime
Arrondissement	Saintes
Canton	Saintonge Estuaire
Community association	Gémozac et la Saintonge Viticole
Coordinates	45 ° 37 ′ N , 0 ° 42 ′ W Coordinates: 45 ° 37 ′ N , 0 ° 42 ′ W
height	34-49 m
surface	8.95 km 2
Residents	654 (January 1, 2017)
Population density	73 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code	17260
INSEE code	17404
	; Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille - Town Hall ( mairie )

Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille is a western commune with 654 inhabitants (at January 1, 2017) in the department of Charente-Maritime in the region Nouvelle-Aquitaine .

location

Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille is located in the old cultural landscape of the Saintonge , about 18 kilometers (driving distance) southwest of Saintes , or about 14 kilometers northwest of Pons . The main town of the community association, Gémozac , is about seven kilometers south.

Population development

year	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2006	2016
Residents	315	283	308	309	370	462	653

In the first half of the 19th century the population was always well over 400; after that, the phylloxera crisis in viticulture and the mechanization of agriculture caused a steady decline. Due to the relative proximity to the cities of Saintes and Pons and the comparatively low rental and property prices, the population of Saint-Simon has increased again slightly in recent years.

economy

Agriculture and viticulture have determined the economic life of the place for centuries, which also functioned as a craft, service and trading center for the - meanwhile largely disappeared - hamlets and individual farms in the surrounding area. The soils of the municipality belong to the Bons Bois cultivation area of the Cognac wine-growing region , but cereals (wheat, maize) are also grown on many arable land. Since the 1980s, tourism (rental of holiday apartments) has been added as a source of income.

history

Little information is available on the history of Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille. However, the Romanesque church suggests that the place already existed in the Middle Ages. It is not known whether the place was affected in the Hundred Years War (1337-1453). Nothing is known of attacks and destruction during the Huguenot Wars (1562–1598) or the French Revolution .

Attractions

Saint Laurent Church

The parish church of Saint-Laurent is a building from the early 12th century with a largely unadorned, but architecturally sophisticated archivolt portal in the west facade, which is also horizontally divided into three or four levels:

The lower level with the portal is optically divided into two by side cornices at the height of the arch, it is framed and stabilized by massive service bundles .

The middle level contains seven arcade arches and ends at the top with a console frieze , the side service bundles are much slimmer than on the ground floor.

The third level is the completely undivided gable field , open only by a window , there are no side frames. The church does not have a pronounced transept , but in the area of the crossing a tower was added on the north side, which also serves as a bell tower and to stabilize the structure. The outer walls of the nave and the apse are stabilized by buttresses , while the outer wall of the apse ends under the eaves in a console frieze. This is completely absent from the nave. The single nave nave, as well as the apse of the church, are barrel vaulted and have arched girders that rest on semicircular pillars. Church construction has been recognized as a monument historique since 1923 .

literature

Le Patrimoine des Communes de la Charente-Maritime. Flohic Editions, Volume 1, Paris 2002, ISBN 2-84234-129-5 , pp. 263-265.

Web links

Commons : Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

↑ Église Saint-Laurent, Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)

[1] Église Saint-Laurent, Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)