Brive-la-Gaillarde

Brive-la-Gaillarde (French pronunciation: [bʁiv la ɡajaʁd]; Limousin dialect of Occitan language: Briva la Galharda) is a commune of France. It is a sub-prefecture of the Corrèze department. It has around 50,000 inhabitants, while the population of the urban area was 89,260 in 1999.

Brive-la-Gaillarde
The Town Hall of Brive-la-Gaillarde
Coat of arms
Location of Brive-la-Gaillarde
Brive-la-Gaillarde
Brive-la-Gaillarde
Coordinates: 45°09′30″N 1°31′56″E
CountryFrance
RegionNouvelle-Aquitaine
DepartmentCorrèze
ArrondissementBrive-la-Gaillarde
CantonBrive-la-Gaillarde-1, 2, 3 and 4
IntercommunalityBrive
Government
  Mayor (20202026) Frédéric Soulier[1]
Area
1
48.59 km2 (18.76 sq mi)
Population
 (2017-01-01)[2]
46,916
  Density970/km2 (2,500/sq mi)
Demonym(s)Brivistes
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
  Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
19031 /19100
Elevation102–315 m (335–1,033 ft)
(avg. 142 m or 466 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Although it is by far the biggest commune in Corrèze, the capital is Tulle. In French popular culture, the town is associated with a song by Georges Brassens.

History

Even though the inhabitants settled around the 1st century, the city only started to grow much later. From around the 5th century onwards, the original city began to develop around a church dedicated to Saint-Martin-l'Espagnol. During the 12th century walls were built around the city and during the Hundred Years' War a second wall was built. These fortifications no longer exist and have been replaced by boulevards.

The commune was named "Brive" until 1919, when it was renamed "Brive-la-Gaillarde". The word "Gaillarde" (still used in current French) probably stands for bravery or strength in the city's name, but it can also refer to the city's walls. Brive now extends outside of its original boundaries into Malemort and Ussac.

During World War II, Brive-la-Gaillarde was a regional capital of the Resistance, acting as a seat of several clandestine information networks and several of the principal resistance movements, including the Armée secrète (or “Secret Army”) and the Mouvements Unis de la Résistance (or "United Movements of the Resistance").

Brive-la-Gaillarde was the first city of Occupied France to liberate itself by its own means, on 15 August 1944. For this, the city received the “Croix de guerre 1939–1945” military decoration.

The medieval centre is mainly a commercial district with retail shops and various cafés. It is also the location of the city hall, the main police station, and the Labenche museum. One notable landmark outside the inner city is the Pont Cardinal, a bridge which used to be a crossing point for travelers from Paris to Toulouse.

Climate

Climate data for Brive-la-Gaillarde (1987–2010 averages, extremes 1987–present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 18.8
(65.8)
24.4
(75.9)
26.7
(80.1)
30.0
(86.0)
32.9
(91.2)
39.6
(103.3)
42.1
(107.8)
40.7
(105.3)
35.9
(96.6)
30.9
(87.6)
25.6
(78.1)
19.3
(66.7)
42.1
(107.8)
Average high °C (°F) 9.7
(49.5)
11.6
(52.9)
15.2
(59.4)
17.4
(63.3)
22.1
(71.8)
25.3
(77.5)
27.4
(81.3)
27.5
(81.5)
23.5
(74.3)
19.1
(66.4)
12.8
(55.0)
9.8
(49.6)
18.5
(65.3)
Daily mean °C (°F) 5.3
(41.5)
6.2
(43.2)
9.1
(48.4)
11.3
(52.3)
15.6
(60.1)
18.7
(65.7)
20.7
(69.3)
20.7
(69.3)
16.9
(62.4)
13.7
(56.7)
8.3
(46.9)
5.5
(41.9)
12.7
(54.9)
Average low °C (°F) 0.9
(33.6)
0.8
(33.4)
2.9
(37.2)
5.3
(41.5)
9.1
(48.4)
12.1
(53.8)
14.0
(57.2)
13.8
(56.8)
10.3
(50.5)
8.2
(46.8)
3.8
(38.8)
1.2
(34.2)
6.9
(44.4)
Record low °C (°F) −11.8
(10.8)
−16.4
(2.5)
−12.6
(9.3)
−5.4
(22.3)
−1.7
(28.9)
2.1
(35.8)
5.2
(41.4)
3.6
(38.5)
0.6
(33.1)
−5.6
(21.9)
−10.2
(13.6)
−13.4
(7.9)
−16.4
(2.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 69.9
(2.75)
61.3
(2.41)
63.3
(2.49)
92.3
(3.63)
86.9
(3.42)
76.6
(3.02)
69.0
(2.72)
71.1
(2.80)
80.1
(3.15)
86.8
(3.42)
85.0
(3.35)
72.1
(2.84)
914.4
(36.00)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 10.8 9.3 9.4 12.6 10.6 9.3 7.8 8.4 8.9 10.9 11.5 10.7 120.2
Mean monthly sunshine hours 91.1 113.3 169.6 177.5 215.1 241.1 256.3 241.3 200.3 137.4 85.2 79.5 2,007.6
Source: Météo France[3]

Administration

The most recent mayors of Brive-la-Gaillarde were:

  • 1966–1995: Jean Charbonnel
  • 1995–2008: Bernard Murat
  • 2008–present: Philippe Nauche

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±%
17935,847    
18005,762−1.5%
18067,608+32.0%
18216,801−10.6%
18318,031+18.1%
18368,843+10.1%
18418,350−5.6%
18468,382+0.4%
18518,889+6.0%
18569,384+5.6%
18619,854+5.0%
186610,389+5.4%
187210,765+3.6%
187611,920+10.7%
188114,182+19.0%
188615,707+10.8%
189116,803+7.0%
189618,111+7.8%
YearPop.±%
190119,496+7.6%
190620,636+5.8%
191121,486+4.1%
192121,711+1.0%
192624,049+10.8%
193126,718+11.1%
193629,074+8.8%
194633,501+15.2%
195436,088+7.7%
196240,175+11.3%
196846,561+15.9%
197551,828+11.3%
198251,511−0.6%
199049,765−3.4%
199949,127−1.3%
200849,675+1.1%
201647,004−5.4%

Transport

Brive-la-Gaillarde railway station offers connections to Limoges, Périgueux, Bordeaux, Clermont-Ferrand, Toulouse, and several regional destinations. The A20 motorway connects Brive with Limoges and Toulouse, the A89 with Bordeaux.

Brive–Souillac Airport lies south of the city. It was opened in 2010 to replace the older Brive-La Roche Airport.

Sport

The city is home to a rugby union team, CA Brive. It also hosted the 2009 Junior World Rowing Championships.

Notable inhabitants

Twin towns – sister cities

Brive-la-Gaillarde is twinned with:[4]

See also

References

  1. "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  2. "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  3. "Brive (19)" (PDF). Fiche Climatologique: Statistiques 1981–2010 et records (in French). Meteo France. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 March 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  4. "Villes jumelées". brive.fr (in French). Brive-la-Gaillarde. Retrieved 2020-04-02.
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