Libourne
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Libourne, the wine-making capital of northern Gironde, near Saint Emilion and Pomerol, is a French commune in the Aquitaine region. Its population in 2007 was 23,000 inhabitants.
[edit] Geography
It is located at the confluence of the Isle and Dordogne rivers.
[edit] History
In 1270, Leybornia was founded as a bastide by Roger de Leybourne (of Kent), an English seneschal of Gascony, under the authority of King Edward I of England. It suffered considerably in the struggles of the French and English for the possession of Gironde in the 14th century, and joined France in the 15th century.
[edit] Sights
The Gothic church, restored in the 19th century, has a stone spire 232 ft high. On the quay there is a machicolated clock-tower which is a survival of the ramparts of the 14th century; and the town-house, containing a small museum and a library, is a quaint relic of the 16th century. There is a statue of Élie, duc Decazes, who was born in the neighborhood.