Villeneuve-sur-Lot

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Villeneuve-sur-Lot
Coat of arms of Villeneuve-sur-Lot
Villeneuve-sur-Lot (France)
Villeneuve-sur-Lot
region Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department Lot-et-Garonne
Arrondissement Villeneuve-sur-Lot
Canton Main town of
Villeneuve-sur-Lot-1
Villeneuve-sur-Lot-2
Community association Grand Villeneuvois
Coordinates 44 ° 24 '  N , 0 ° 42'  E Coordinates: 44 ° 24 '  N , 0 ° 42'  E
height 42-209 m
surface 81.32 km 2
Residents 22,064 (January 1, 2017)
Population density 271 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code 47300
INSEE code 47323
Website www.ville-villeneuve-sur-lot.fr

Bridge over the Lot River
City gate in Villeneuve

Villeneuve-sur-Lot [ vilnœvsyrlɔt ] ( okz. Vilanueva d'Olt ) is a French city in the region Nouvelle-Aquitaine and with 22,064 inhabitants (at January 1, 2017) by Agen the second largest city in the department of Lot-et-Garonne . At the same time, it is now considered the largest medieval bastide in southern France .

geography

Villeneuve-sur-Lot lies on the lower reaches of the Lot River . At the end of the 1990s, a new weir system with a dam height of 13 meters was built just above the city , creating a large reservoir above the weir that is used by the neighboring communities for water tourism. Since the commercial shipping is already set on the Lot, the area is mainly sports and houseboat used -Fahrern.

history

  • The original settlement of the area goes back to the Romans , who set up a camp nearby called Excisum .
  • At the beginning of the 11th century, the Benedictines built a monastery on this site and a small village of potters and farmers formed around it.
  • It was only between 1254 and 1263 that the Bastide Villeneuve-sur-Lot was built on behalf of Alfonso von Poitiers , brother of Louis the Saint , and given a charter of privileges, which in 46 articles the social, criminal and economic life of the city Are defined. The building plan was identical to that of all the bastides in south-west France: a rectangular floor plan organized around a central square. The specialty of Villeneuve was its dominant position on the flow of the Lot.
  • This privileged location enabled Villeneuve-sur-Lot to play a strategic role in all armed conflicts in the region:
    • during the Hundred Years War ,
    • during the Huguenot Wars ,
    • at the uprising Fronde the princes .
      In this civil war that tore France apart, Villeneuve sided against Mazarin . The city was besieged and one of the last to surrender was in 1653. This defeat meant the loss of city walls and moats.

Attractions

  • City gate of Paris and Pujols from the 13th and 14th centuries
  • Church Sainte-Catherine in Romano-Byzantine style. It was built in the early 20th century on the site of the former church from the 13th century and contains remarkable stained glass windows from the former church.
  • Church Saint-Etienne from the 13th-16th century
  • Chapelle Notre-Dame-du-bout-du-pont (Lady Chapel at the end of the bridge) is built freely hanging over the Lot River.
  • Pont des Cieutats , also called Pont-Vieux (old bridge over the Lot)
  • The old main square of the Bastide ( Place des Cornières )
  • Old Town Hall
  • Pont de la Liberation , also called Pont-Neuf , was the largest bridge made of unreinforced concrete at the time
  • State horse stud

Town twinning

Personalities

Web links

Commons : Villeneuve-sur-Lot  - Collection of images, videos and audio files