Agen (, , ) is the

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain inter ...

of the

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 ...

, Southwestern France. It lies on the river

Garonne The Garonne ( , ; Catalan language, Catalan, Basque language, Basque and , ; or ) is a river that flows in southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux � ...

, southeast of

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 ...

. In 2021, the commune had a population of 32,485.

Geography

The city of Agen lies in the southwestern department of

Lot-et-Garonne Lot-et-Garonne (, ) is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the rivers Lot and Garonne, it had a population of 331,271 in 2019.Garonne The Garonne ( , ; Catalan language, Catalan, Basque language, Basque and , ; or ) is a river that flows in southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux � ...

, the Canal de Garonne flows through the city, approximately halfway between

and

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

Climate

Agen features an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

(''Cfb'') in the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

and according to the latest temperature numbers borders a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(''Cfa''). According to the

Trewartha climate classification The Trewartha climate classification (TCC), or the Köppen–Trewartha climate classification (KTC), is a climate classification system first published by American geographer Glenn Thomas Trewartha in 1966. It is a modified version of the Köp ...

the climate is now humid subtropical (''Cf''). Winters are mild and feature cool to cold temperatures while summers are mild and warm. Rainfall is spread equally throughout the year; however, most sunshine hours are from March–September.

Toponymy

From

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language, spoken in parts o ...

''Agen'' (1197), itself from

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

''Aginnum'' (3rd century ''Itinéraire d'Antonin''), from a

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

root ''agin-'' meaning "rock or height".

Population

Economy

The town has a higher level of unemployment than the national average. Major employers include the pharmaceutical factory UPSA.

Sights

Museum of Fine Arts seen from the Place du Dr Esquirol. The old centre of town contains a number of medieval buildings. The twelfth century

Agen Cathedral Agen Cathedral () is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Agen, Lot-et-Garonne, Aquitaine, France. It is dedicated to Saint Caprasius. It was built in the 12th century as a collegiate church and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The cathedral ...

, dedicated to Saint Caprasius, is one of the few large churches in France with a double

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, a regional trait also found in the

Church of the Jacobins The Church of the Jacobins is a deconsecrated Roman Catholic church located in Toulouse, France. It is a large brick building whose construction started in 1230, and whose architecture influenced the development of the ''Gothique méridional'' (S ...

in nearby

. The Saint Hilaire church, dedicated to the theme of the Holy Trinity which the Saint in question did a lot to defend, is notable for its unusual statues in front of the Church – Moses on the right, and

St Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the early Christian Church. He appears repe ...

on the left. The art museum, the , contains artefacts, furniture and sculptures from

prehistoric times Prehistory, also called pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the first known use of stone tools by hominins million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use o ...

onwards. The art gallery contains several hundred works, including several by

Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 1746 – 16 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, an ...

, and others by Bonnard and Seurat. The collection also contains a large number of works by artists who lived locally. The museum is made up of twenty or so rooms. The Canal des Deux Mers, which joins the Mediterranean with the Atlantic, crosses the river Garonne at Agen via the town's famous canal bridge.

Colour photography pioneer

Louis Arthur Ducos du Hauron Louis Arthur Ducos du Hauron (8 December 1837 – 31 August 1920) was a French pioneer of color photography. Personal life He was born in Langon, Gironde and died in Agen. Photography After writing an unpublished paper setting forth his basic ...

(1837 – 1920), a pioneer of

colour photography Color photography (also spelled as colour photography in Commonwealth English) is photography that uses media capable of capturing and reproducing colors. By contrast, black-and-white or gray-monochrome photography records only a single channe ...

lived and worked in Agen. He developed practical processes for colour photography on the three-colour principle, using both

additive Additive may refer to: Mathematics * Additive function, a function in number theory * Additive map, a function that preserves the addition operation * Additive set-function see Sigma additivity * Additive category, a preadditive category with fin ...

and subtractive methods. In 1868 he patented his ideas (French Patent No. 83061) and in 1869 he published them in ''Les couleurs en photographie, solution du problème''. The most widely reproduced of his surviving colour photographs is the ''View of Agen'', an 1877 landscape, printed by the subtractive assembly method which he pioneered. Several different photographs of the view from his attic window, one dated 1874, also survive.

Entertainment

The municipal theatre "Théâtre Ducourneau" presents theatre, and occasionally classical concerts. The smaller "Théâtre du jour" has a resident theatre company presenting a variety of recent or older plays (Shakespeare, Beckett, as well as lesser known playwrights). There are two cinemas, one a commercial multiscreened affair, the other an arts cinema run by a voluntary organization. The latter organizes

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theater, cinemas or screening venues, usually annually and in a single city or region. Some film festivals show films outdoors or online. Films may be of recent ...

s every year.

Sport

Rugby is extremely popular in the town, and the local team,

SU Agen Sporting Union Agen Lot-et-Garonne (), commonly referred to as SU Agen, Agen () or SUALG, is a French professional rugby union club based in Agen, Lot-et-Garonne that competes in the Pro D2, France's second division of rugby. Founded in 1908, ...

, is enthusiastically supported. The town also serves as the base for the Team Lot-et-Garonne cycling team.

Transport

The Gare d'Agen connects Agen with Toulouse and Bordeaux as well as

Périgueux Périgueux (, ; or ) is a commune in the Dordogne department, in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. Périgueux is the prefecture of Dordogne, and the capital city of Périgord. It is also the seat of ...

. It is around an hour from Toulouse and around an hour from Bordeaux. The

TGV The TGV (; , , 'high-speed train') is France's intercity high-speed rail service. With commercial operating speeds of up to on the newer lines, the TGV was conceived at the same period as other technological projects such as the Ariane 1 rocke ...

train to Paris takes three hours and thirteen minutes with a stop in Bordeaux. Agen is connected, by the

A62 autoroute The A62 autoroute is a French motorway forming part of the ''Autoroute de Deux Mers'' (Two Seas Motorway). The route forms the entirety of European route E 72, which is a part of the International E-road network, inter-European road system. ...

, to both

and

. The Agen Airport is serviced by

Airlinair Société Airlinair, simply known as Airlinair, was a French regional airline based in Rungis, France, operating scheduled regional flights (some of which were on behalf of Air France), and aircraft lease services. The airline has set up bases ...

service to Paris Orly 6 days a week. It is also used for business and leisure flying. Agen stands on the ''voie verte'' cycle path between the Mediterranean and close to Bordeaux.

Diocese

Agen is the seat of a Roman Catholic diocese that comprises the Département of Lot and Garonne. It is a

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...

of the

archdiocese of Bordeaux The Archdiocese of Bordeaux (–Bazas) (Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Lati ...

Twin towns – sister cities

Agen is twinned with: * Corpus Christi, United States *

Dinslaken Dinslaken () is a town in the Wesel (district), district of Wesel, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is known for its harness racing track, its now closed Coal mining, coal mine in Dinslaken-Lohberg, Lohberg and its wealthy neighborhoods ''Hi ...

, Germany *

Galena, Illinois Galena is the largest city in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 3,308 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A section of the city is listed on the National Register of Historic Plac ...

, United States *

Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...

, Wales, United Kingdom * Toledo, Spain *

Tuapse Tuapse (; , Ṫuapsă ) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the northeast shore of the Black Sea, south of Gelendzhik and north of Sochi. Population: Tuapse is a sea port and the northern center of a resort zone which extends sou ...

, Russia

Notable people

;As place of birth *Saint Caprasius of Agen, a Christian martyr and saint of the 4th. century * Phoebadius of Agen (died ca. 392) a Catholic bishop of the fourth century. *

Bernard Palissy Bernard Palissy (; c. 1510c. 1589) was a Huguenot, French Huguenot pottery, potter, Hydraulics, hydraulics engineer and craftsman, famous for having struggled for sixteen years to imitate Chinese porcelain. He is best known for his so-called "rus ...

(ca.1510–1590),

potter A potter is someone who makes pottery. Potter may also refer to: Places United States *Potter, originally a section on the Alaska Railroad, currently a neighborhood of Anchorage, Alaska, US *Potter, Arkansas *Potter, Nebraska *Potters, New Jerse ...

, he may have been born in Saintes. *

Joseph Justus Scaliger Joseph Justus Scaliger (; 5 August 1540 – 21 January 1609) was a Franco-Italian Calvinist religious leader and scholar, known for expanding the notion of classical history from Greek and Ancient Roman history to include Persian, Babylonian, Je ...

(1540–1609), Calvinist religious leader and scholar. * Pierre Dupuy (1582–1651), writer and scholar. * Francés de Corteta (1586-1667), nobleman and poet * Joseph Barsalou (1600–1660), apothecary and physician. *

Godefroi, Comte d'Estrades Godefroi, Comte d'Estrades (1607 – February 26, 1686) was a French diplomat and Marshal of France, marshal. Biography D'Estrades was born in Agen. He was the son of Francois d'Estrades (died 1653), a partisan of Henry IV of France, Henry IV, ...

(1607–1686), diplomatist and

Marshal of France Marshal of France (, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to General officer, generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1793–1804) ...

. *

Bernard Germain de Lacépède Bernard-Germain-Étienne de La Ville-sur-Illon, comte de Lacépède or La Cépède (; 26 December 17566 October 1825) was a French natural history, naturalist and an active freemason. He is known for his contribution to the Comte de Buffon's g ...

(1756–1825),

naturalist Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

and active

freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

. * Jean Hilaire Asté (1775–1840), professor of music and instrument-maker, inventied the

ophicleide The ophicleide ( ) is a family of conical-bore keyed brass instruments invented in early 19th-century France to extend the keyed bugle into the lower range. Of these, the bass ophicleide in eight-foot (8′) C or 9′ B took root over the cour ...

Jean Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent Jean-Baptiste Geneviève Marcellin Bory de Saint-Vincent was a French naturalist, officer and politician. He was born on 6 July 1778 in Agen (Lot-et-Garonne) and died on 22 December 1846 in Paris. Biologist and geographer, he was particularly int ...

(1780–1846), naturalist and politician. *

Jacques Jasmin Jansemin (born Jacques Boé and also known as Jasmin in French) (16 March 1798 – 4 October 1864) was an Occitan poet. Life He was born at Agen, his family name being Boé. His father, who was a tailor, had a certain facility for making doggere ...

(1798–1864), Provençal poet. * Victor Rabu (1834–1907), architect, built many churches in Montevideo, Uruguay * Joseph Chaumié (1849–1919), politician * Les Lalanne, artists and sculptors ''François-Xavier Lalanne'' (1927–2008) and ''Claude Lalanne'' (1924–2019). *

Michel Serres Michel Serres (; ; 1 September 1930 – 1 June 2019) was a French philosopher, theorist and writer. His works explore themes of science, time and death, and later incorporated prose. Life and career The son of a bargeman, Serres entered France ...

(born 1930), philosopher and author *

Jacques Sadoul Jacques Sadoul (1934 – 18 January 2013) was a French novelist, book editor and non-fiction author. Work on science fiction His ''Histoire de la science-fiction moderne, 1911-1971'' ��History of Modern SF”(1973; in 2 volumes 1975; revi ...

(born 1934), novelist, book editor and non-fiction author *

Jean Cruguet Jean Cruguet (born March 8, 1939, in Agen, Lot-et-Garonne, France) is a retired French-American thoroughbred horse racing jockey who won the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. At age five, Cruguet was placed in an orphanage after h ...

(born 1939),

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

who won the U.S. Triple Crown of thoroughbred racing *

Alain Aspect Alain Aspect (; born 15 June 1947) is a French physicist noted for his experimental work on quantum entanglement. Aspect was awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics, jointly with John Clauser and Anton Zeilinger, "for experiments with Quantum e ...

(born 1947), physicist and

Nobel Prize in Physics The Nobel Prize in Physics () is an annual award given by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for those who have made the most outstanding contributions to mankind in the field of physics. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the ...

winner in 2022 *

Francis Cabrel Francis Christian Cabrel (; born 23 November 1953) is a French singer-songwriter, composer and guitarist. Considered one of the most influential French musical artists of all time, he has released a number of albums falling mostly within the real ...

(born 1953), singer-songwriter and guitarist *

Bernard Campan Bernard Campan (born 4 April 1958) is a French actor, film director and writer. He is a member of Les Inconnus trio of humorists. He won a César Award for Best Debut for ''Les Trois Frères'', and was nominated for best actor for his role in '' ...

(born 1958), actor, film director and writer * Emmanuel Flipo (born 1958), artist * Bernard Andrieu (born 1959, philosopher and historian * Béatrice Uria-Monzon (born 1963), mezzo-soprano. *

Stéphane Rideau Stéphane Rideau (born 25 July 1976) is a French actor. Although intending to pursue a career in sports, he was discovered in 1992 at a rugby game and then auditioned for a role in the film ''Les Roseaux sauvages'' (''Wild Reeds'') by André Téc ...

(born 1976), actor * Fabien Barcella (born 1983), former rugby union player with 20 caps for

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

* Aymeric Laporte (born 1994), footballer with 20 caps for

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

* Brice Dulin, (born 1990), rugby union player with 36 caps for

. ;As residence *

Julius Caesar Scaliger Julius Caesar Scaliger (; 23 April or August 1484 – 21 October 1558), or Giulio Cesare della Scala, was an Italian scholar and physician, who spent a major part of his career in France. He employed the techniques and discoveries of Renaissance ...

In 1525 he became physician to Antonio della Rovera,

bishop of Agen The Diocese of Agen (Latin: ''Dioecesis Agennensis''; French: ''Diocèse d'Agen'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. The Diocese of Agen comprises the ''département'' of Lot-et-Garonne, in t ...

, and remained until his death in 1558. *

Nostradamus Michel de Nostredame (December 1503 – July 1566), usually Latinisation of names, Latinised as Nostradamus, was a French Astrology, astrologer, apothecary, physician, and reputed Oracle, seer, who is best known for his book ''Les Prophéti ...

lived in Agen from 1531 until at least 1534. He was married to a local woman with whom he had two children.

Miscellaneous

Agen is the "capital of the

prune A prune is a dried plum, most commonly from the European plum (''Prunus domestica'') tree. Not all plum species or varieties can be dried into prunes. Use of the term ''prune'' for fresh plums is obsolete except when applied to varieties of ...

", a local product consumed as a sweet, either stuffed with prune purée or in pastries, or as a dessert, e.g., prunes soaked in

Armagnac Armagnac (, ) is a distinctive kind of brandy produced in the Armagnac (region), Armagnac region in Gascony, southwest France. It is distilled from wine usually made from a blend of grapes including Baco 22A, Colombard, Folle blanche and Ugni ...

, a type of brandy. On the last weekend of August, a prune festival comprises rock concerts, circus performances and prune tastings.

Jewish presence

The first

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

settled in the town in the twelfth century AD. They were expelled from the town in 1306. A number of Jews returned to the town in 1315, and a "Rue des Juifs" is documented ever since this period. In 1968, about 600

lived in the town, though most of them had emigrated from North

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. A

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

still exists in the town.

References

External links

Site de la ville

Office de tourisme

– Catholic Encyclopædia article {{Authority control Communes of Lot-et-Garonne Prefectures in France Gallia Aquitania Agenais Lot-et-Garonne communes articles needing translation from French Wikipedia