Rochefort, Charente Maritime

Description:

Geography and Transport

Situated on the Charente River in the west of the Charente Maritime Department, Rochefort is a historic naval town.  The commune covers an area of 21.95km².  Key roads are to the north of the town, the A837 motorway taking traffic south and east to the A10 motorway and Saintes (45km), and the N137 taking traffic north to La Rochelle (37km).  Rochefort has a rail link to TER (regional trains), and for connection to the TGV the nearest options are Surgeres (29km) or La Rochelle (29km).  The TGV connects with Paris (Montparnasse) in just over 3 hours.  The nearest commercial airport offering flights to the UK is at La Rochelle, although the airstrip at Rochefort was used for a time by budget airlines in 2004/5, while La Rochelle was undergoing construction work.
See also:  Tonnay Charente, Ile d'Aix

Climate

The maritime climate brings warm summers, and moderate winters.  Average summer temperatures are 22C to 25C (14C to 17C night), and in winter this drops to 9C to 10C (4c to 5C night).  September and May are warm, with averages of 22C (12C) and 19C (12C) respectively.  Wettest months are Oct and Nov with 62mm to 66mm, whilst the driest are June (24mm) and Aug (29mm).  Rochefort is within an area that receives over 2000 hours of sunshine per year.

Tourism

Rochefort was once a strategically important Atlantic seaport and manufacturing town, built up around the old Corderie (rope works) and Arsenal on the bank of the Charente River in the 17^th century.  The town was built at the request of Louis XIV, as a place of refuge, defence and supply for the French Navy, which at the time needed to re-assert its power on the seas.  The Corderie, built between 1666 and 1669 was the longest building in Europe at 373m, and was an important development for an expanding navy. It was destroyed by fire during the occupation in WWII, but was restored between 1974 and 1988, and now houses the Centre International de la Mer (exhibition on rope making and machinery in the 19^th century) and the Chamber of Commerce.

The town was a major departure point for botanical expeditions, where unknown species of plants, (palm trees, coffee, begonia) were brought back from far and wide.  The Jardin de Retours celebrates the history of these trips, with the Conservatoire du Begonia housing more than 1500 species and 12,000 hybrid species of the flower.  The novelist Julian Viaud (alias Pierre Loti - 1850-1923) famously lived in Rochefort, and his house is now a museum displaying the many items he brought back from his time travelling as a naval officer.  The house displays exotically decorated rooms and weird and wonderful items from the orient.

In 1779, The Hermione (a ship built in Rochefort) took the Marquis Fayette to join the insurrectionists in the American war of independence, and the ship is now being re-built in Rochefort.  Visitors can see how the work is progressing, in preparation for the eventual launch and trans-Atlantic crossing.  It will return to Rochefort as a visitor attraction.  The Naval Museum (housed in a 17^th century hotel), and the Museum of the Naval Medical School (in a wing of the former naval hospital), are current attractions, as is the Musee des Commerces d'Autrefois (a recreated interior of a 19^th century commercial building).  All of these attractions are popular with tourists.  

Other sights of interest are the Pont Transbordeur (a working transporter bridge built in 1900), and the Suspension Bridge at Tonnay sur Charente built in 1842.  The Port de Plaisance has capacity for 300 moorings in the centre of the town, and is 15 nautical miles from Fort Boyard and the Ile d'Aix.  Rochefort is a Spa town, where waters rise from 1800m deep.  The thermal baths are used to treat conditions for rhumatism, the veins and skin. 

The town holds many events throughout the year, but of note is the Fete du Nautism (May), with many free animations and introductions to watersports.  The Battle de Rochefort (May) is organised by Hip Hop dance group Pyramid, with top dance groups from all over France performing spectacular and improvised dance moves, competing in teams of 4 versus 4.

Whilst Rochefort is the 3^rd largest exporter of timber in France, the largest companies here are Foggini-France (Plastic Manufacture), Aunis Distribution, and Les Platanes (Intermarche).   There is an ALA (French Air Force) training base at St Agnant airfield.

Economy

Rochefort is part of the Saintonge Maritime economic zone which has an unemployment rate of 11.4%, compared against the regional rate of 8.6% and the national rate of 9.1% (INSEE 2006). 

Facilities

As you would expect from a town off the size most amenities are available, however you need to travel to Tonnay Charente (8km) to find the nearest public swimming pool.

Education

There are 7 state nursery schools (plus 1 private), 10 state primary schools (plus 2 private), and 3 state secondary schools (plus one private).  The town has 3 colleges (Lycee).  

Key Stats

Most of the properties in Royan are main residences 85.4%, with (5.5%) classed as second homes.  There are more people aged 60 or over than the national average (25.3% vs 21.3%), and the number of retired people is also higher (21% vs 18.2%).  23.1% of the local population are under 19 years of age.  There are fewer males than females resident here (46.9% vs 53.1%).

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