Machecoul
Encyclopedia
Machecoul is a commune
in the Loire-Atlantique
department in western France
.
Its 5,732 inhabitants are called Machecoulais.
of Machecoul is surrounded by the following communes
:
bicycle factory. Fans of the Tour de France
will recall the Breton cyclist Bernard Hinault
riding for them in the 1970s.
Machecoul has a weekly street market where one can buy roasted poulet noir, the black chicken of Challans
.
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Loire-Atlantique
Loire-Atlantique
Loire-Atlantique is a department on the west coast of France named after the Loire River and the Atlantic Ocean.-History:...
department in western France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Its 5,732 inhabitants are called Machecoulais.
Geography
The communeCommunes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
of Machecoul is surrounded by the following communes
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
:
- in Loire-AtlantiqueLoire-AtlantiqueLoire-Atlantique is a department on the west coast of France named after the Loire River and the Atlantic Ocean.-History:...
: Bourgneuf-en-RetzBourgneuf-en-RetzBourgneuf-en-Retz is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.-See also:*Communes of the Loire-Atlantique department...
, Fresnay-en-RetzFresnay-en-RetzFresnay-en-Retz is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.-See also:*Communes of the Loire-Atlantique department...
, Saint-Même-le-TenuSaint-Même-le-TenuSaint-Même-le-Tenu is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.-References:*...
, Saint-Mars-de-CoutaisSaint-Mars-de-CoutaisSaint-Mars-de-Coutais is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.-References:*...
, Saint-Lumine-de-CoutaisSaint-Lumine-de-CoutaisSaint-Lumine-de-Coutais is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.-References:*...
, Saint-Philbert-de-Grand-LieuSaint-Philbert-de-Grand-LieuSaint-Philbert-de-Grand-Lieu is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.It's about 400 km southeast of Paris, via Chartres, Le Mans, Angers, and Nantes....
, La MarneLa MarneLa Marne is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.-See also:*Communes of the Loire-Atlantique department...
, PaulxPaulxPaulx is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.... - in VendéeVendéeThe Vendée is a department in the Pays-de-la-Loire region in west central France, on the Atlantic Ocean. The name Vendée is taken from the Vendée river which runs through the south-eastern part of the department.-History:...
: Bois-de-CénéBois-de-CénéBois-de-Céné is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France.-References:*...
.
Sights
- Gallo-Roman Wood Lighthouse ("Phare à Bois").
- 8th Merovingian sarcophagi.
- Many old mills.
- 11th century Notre-Dame-de-la-Chaume abbey.
- Former 13th century RomanesqueRomanesque architectureRomanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
church. - La Trinité church (1881).
- 11th century Cahouët Bridge ("Pont de Cahouët"), wrongly said "Roman Bridge" ("Pont Romain")(it does not date from Roman times). Small bridge over the river Falleron.
- Castle of Machecoul (also known as "Castle of Gilles de RaisGilles de RaisGilles de Montmorency-Laval , Baron de Rais, was a Breton knight, a leader in the French army and a companion-in-arms of Joan of Arc. He is best known as a prolific serial killer of children...
" ("Château de Gilles de RaisGilles de RaisGilles de Montmorency-Laval , Baron de Rais, was a Breton knight, a leader in the French army and a companion-in-arms of Joan of Arc. He is best known as a prolific serial killer of children...
") or "BluebeardBluebeard"Bluebeard" is a French literary folktale written by Charles Perrault and is one of eight tales by the author first published by Barbin in Paris in January 1697 in Histoires ou Contes du temps passé. The tale tells the story of a violent nobleman in the habit of murdering his wives and the...
's castle" ("Château de Barbe-Bleue")): close to the town centre are the ruins of the 13th century castle of the town, once owned by the infamous child-murderer Gilles de RaisGilles de RaisGilles de Montmorency-Laval , Baron de Rais, was a Breton knight, a leader in the French army and a companion-in-arms of Joan of Arc. He is best known as a prolific serial killer of children...
(1404–1440). Nowadays, on summer evenings, one can partake of a son et lumière show telling his story. - The "Auditoire" (18th century). Former court main hall (central part), which was built in 1755.
- The Lime Kiln ("Four à Chaux") (1857). Located on Saint-Michel Island, rich in limestone. Restored in 2001.
- Les Halles (1885).
- The Hippodrome des Chaumes (1885).
- The former Segin Distillery (1886).
Economy
On the edge of town is the GitaneGitane
Gitane is a French manufacturer of bicycles based in Machecoul, France; the name "Gitane" means gypsy woman. The brand was synonymous with French bicycle racing from the 1960s through the mid-1980s, sponsoring riders such as Jacques Anquetil , Lucien Van Impe , Bernard Hinault , Laurent Fignon ,...
bicycle factory. Fans of the Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
will recall the Breton cyclist Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault is a former French cyclist known for five victories in the Tour de France. He is one of only five cyclists to have won all three Grand Tours, and the only cyclist to have won each more than once. He won the Tour de France in 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982 and 1985...
riding for them in the 1970s.
Machecoul has a weekly street market where one can buy roasted poulet noir, the black chicken of Challans
Challans
Challans is a commune in the Vendée département in the Pays de la Loire région in western France....
.
Twin towns
Machecoul is twinned with:- Ühlingen-BirkendorfÜhlingen-BirkendorfÜhlingen-Birkendorf is a town in the district of Waldshut in Baden-Württemberg in Germany.- References :...
, Baden-WürttembergBaden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
; - ShifnalShifnalShifnal is a small market town in Shropshire, England. It forms part of The Wrekin constituency, and is about east of Telford. It has a railway station on the Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton Line and is near to the M54 motorway.-Early medieval time:...
, ShropshireShropshireShropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
; - Valea Drăganului, TransylvaniaTransylvaniaTransylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
, RomaniaRomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
.
People
Machecoul was the birthplace of:- Gilles de RaisGilles de RaisGilles de Montmorency-Laval , Baron de Rais, was a Breton knight, a leader in the French army and a companion-in-arms of Joan of Arc. He is best known as a prolific serial killer of children...
(1404–1440), noble, soldier, and one time brother-in-arms of Joan of ArcJoan of ArcSaint Joan of Arc, nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" , is a national heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. A peasant girl born in eastern France who claimed divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the...
. He was later accused and ultimately convicted of torturingTortureTorture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
, rapingRapeRape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
and murderMurderMurder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
ing dozens, if not hundreds, of young children. - Marc Éliard (born 1958), bass player of the new waveNew Wave musicNew Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
/rockRock and rollRock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
band IndochineIndochine (band)Indochine is a French new wave/rock band, formed in 1981. The band was very successful in France in the 1980s, as well as other parts of continental Europe and Latin America, with songs like L'Aventurier and Canary Bay...
. - Cédric MichaudCédric MichaudCédric Michaud is a French marathon speed skater.He was the first non Dutchman after Oleg Bozhev to win the Essent Cup in 2002-03, while he won the cup another time in 2005-06. In that year he also won the Dick van Gangelen Trophy and the Six Days of the Greenery...
(born 1976), marathon speed skaterSpeed skatingSpeed skating, or speedskating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in traveling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating...
. - Mickaël LandreauMickaël LandreauMickaël Vincent André-Marie Landreau is a French professional football goalkeeper, who currently plays for French Ligue 1 side Lille OSC. He has 11 caps for the French national team.-Club career:...
(born 1979), professional football (soccer)Football (soccer)Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
player.