Blaye (; ) is a commune and

subprefecture A subprefecture is an administrative division of a country that is below prefecture or province. Albania There are twelve Counties of Albania, Albanian counties or prefectures, each of which is divided into several Districts of Albania, district ...

in the

Gironde Gironde ( , US usually , ; , ) is the largest department in the southwestern French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,623,749.

department in

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine () is the largest Regions of France, administrative region in France by area, spanning the west and southwest of Metropolitan France. The region was created in 2014 by the merging of Aquitaine, Limousin, and Poitou-Charentes ...

in southwestern France. For centuries, Blaye was a particularly convenient crossing point for those who came from the north and went to

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

or further south, to Spain and Portugal. Fortified since antiquity, this eminently strategic site located on the bank of a large river, was modernized at the end of the 17th century, thanks to Vauban. In 1685, the ''Commissaire general des fortifications'' of Louis XIV proposed the construction of a real lock on the

in order to "take control of the river" and to hold Bordeaux in case of a revolt. It is then that the citadel of Blaye was built, constituting the major element of the estuary control system. Dominating the urban landscape, this imposing building has been listed as a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

since 2008, as part of a group of structures engineered by Vauban, in testimony to their global influence on military architecture and planning over the next few centuries.

Population

Its inhabitants are called ''Blayais'' or ''Blayaises'' in French.

Geography

Blaye is located on the right bank of the

Gironde estuary The Gironde estuary ( , US usually ; , ; , ) is a navigable estuary (though often referred to as a river) in southwest France and is formed from the meeting of the rivers Dordogne and Garonne just downstream of the centre of Bordeaux. Coverin ...

(which is some wide at this point), close to the A10 autoroute, north of

. There is a rail line with occasional freight trains, but no passenger services. A small ferry crosses the Gironde to Lamarque, in Medoc.

History

In ancient times Blaye (''Blavia'') was a port of the Santones. Tradition states that the Frankish hero

Roland Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was mil ...

was buried in its basilica, which was on the site of the citadel. It is an important location in the epic '' Jourdain de Blaye''. Blaye was early an important stronghold which played an important part in the wars against the English (who burnt it in 1352) and the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion were a series of civil wars between French Catholic Church, Catholics and Protestantism, Protestants (called Huguenots) from 1562 to 1598. Between two and four million people died from violence, famine or disease di ...

(when it was the site of a Spanish naval victory in 1593). The duchess of Berry was imprisoned in its fortress in 1832–1833. The town was formerly named Blaye-et-Sainte-Luce and was renamed ''Blaye'' in June 1961.

Sights

The town has a citadel built by Vauban on a rock beside the river, which contains the ruins of a medieval castle, Château des Rudel(''fr''), and the ruins of Basilica of Saint-Romain, which holds the tomb of Charibert II,

king of Aquitaine The Duchy of Aquitaine (, ; , ) was a historical fiefdom located in the western, central, and southern areas of present-day France, south of the river Loire. The full extent of the duchy, as well as its name, fluctuated greatly over the centuries ...

, and son of

Clotaire II Chlothar II, sometimes called "the Young" (French language, French: le Jeune), (May/June 584 – 18 October 629) was king of the Franks, ruling Neustria (584–629), Kingdom of Burgundy, Burgundy (613–629) and Austrasia (613–623). The son of ...

. Nearby, Fort Paté, on an island in the river, and Fort Médoc on its left bank, also of the 17th century, completed Vauban's defenses of the water approaches of Bordeaux . The citadel of Blaye, its city walls, Fort Paté and Fort Médoc (the latter in nearby Cussac-Fort-Médoc) were listed in 2008 as

World Heritage Sites World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural heritag ...

, as part of the " Fortifications of Vauban" group.

Economy

Blaye has a small river-port, mainly used for grain exports. Fine red wine is produced in the district, in the AOC Côtes de Blaye. A large nuclear power station with four reactors is located nearby.

Education

Several schools are located in Blaye. Public schools include the following: * École Maternelle Pierre Bergeon * École Maternelle Lucien Grosperrin * École Elementaire Pierre Malbeteau * École Elementaire Andre Vallaeys

Legal institutions

The town has tribunals of first instance and of commerce.

Twin towns — sister cities

Blaye is twinned with: * Măcin