Luçon

Luçon
Commune
Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption de Luçon
Coat of arms
Location of Luçon
Luçon Show map of France Luçon Show map of Pays de la Loire
Coordinates: 46°27′20″N 1°09′53″W
Country	France
Region	Pays de la Loire
Department	Vendée
Arrondissement	Fontenay-le-Comte
Canton	Luçon
Intercommunality	Sud Vendée Littoral
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Dominique Bonnin[1]
Area ^1	31.52 km^2 (12.17 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[2]	9,483
• Density	300/km^2 (780/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	85128 /85400
Elevation	1–40 m (3.3–131.2 ft)
^1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km^2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Luçon (pronounced [lysɔ̃]) is a commune in the Vendée department, Pays de la Loire region, western France. Its inhabitants are known as Luçonnais.

Luçon Cathedral is the seat of the Diocese of Luçon (comprising the Vendée), where Cardinal Richelieu once served as bishop.

History

Once a Roman town (Lucionensis),^[3] Luçon takes its name from the Latin word for the northern pike (Lucius) and this fish decorates the coat of arms to this day.^[4] The town had an important position on the Roman road from Les Sables d'Olonne to Niort, and was a sea port in the Roman period.^[3]

During the Dark Ages, a monastery was founded here by Saint Philbert.^[5] The town was sacked by the Normans in 846 and plundered by the Vikings in 853. In the Middle Ages, the receding seas left Luçon inland, but a canal allowed it to maintain a port connected to the Atlantic.^[3] The town remained an important commercial centre throughout this period.

Luçon became the spiritual capital of Bas Poitou in 1317, when Pope John XXII located the seat of the Diocese of Luçon here.^[6] Today, the town is perhaps most famous for its association with Armand Jean du Plessis (Cardinal Richelieu). Before becoming a minister of Louis XIII, Richelieu was the bishop of Luçon. During his tenure he directed the rebuilding of much of the town after it was destroyed during the French Wars of Religion. This included restoring the magnificent Cathedral of Notre Dame, whose 85-metre spire dominates the countryside for miles.^[7] Within the cathedral can be found a church organ donated by Napoleon III, while a statue of Richelieu stands outside.

In the 18th-19th centuries, the town was refurbished in a pseudo-medieval style. Many of the most remarkable buildings, including those in the quartier Bourgneuf, were constructed at this time.^[8] The elegant town park, the Jardin Dumaine, was donated to the inhabitants by local doctor Pierre-Hyacinthe Dumaine in 1872.^[9]

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	8,243	—
1975	9,002	+1.27%
1982	9,066	+0.10%
1990	9,099	+0.05%
1999	9,311	+0.26%
2007	9,722	+0.54%
2012	9,437	−0.59%
2017	9,540	+0.22%
Source: INSEE[10]

See also

• Communes of the Vendée department
• In Luçon's mairie there is a sculpture of Richelieu by Pierre Charles Lenoir

References

1. "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
2. "Populations légales 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
3. "Lucon.Vendee, France". www.vendee-guide.co.uk.
4. "Drapeaux, armoiries, symboles et emblèmes de la ville de Luçon". svowebmaster.free.fr.
5. "Saint Philbert, patron secondaire du diocèse". vendee.catholique.fr.
6. "Histoire du diocèse de Luçon". vendee.catholique.fr.
7. "Reconstruire". vendee.catholique.fr.
8. "Histoire". bourgneuf.lucon.free.fr.
9. "Parcs et Jardins de France - JARDIN DUMAINE". www.parcsetjardins.fr.
10. Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE