In response to the 848 Norman plunder of nearby Brantôme, a fort was built near a ford of the Dronne. Around the year 1000, the castle of Ribérac was built on a hill where the current cemetery is. Houses are set up at the foot of the walls, descending towards the valley. After the Wars of Religion, in the late 1500s, the castle was abanonded and was in ruins by the time of the French Revolution.[3]
Despite the efforts of local Maquis resistance fighters,[5] the area was occupied by the German army in March 1944.
Geography
Ribérac is on the left bank of the Dronne. To the north, the soil in the Dronne valley is covered with alluvium, while the heights are made up of Cretaceouslimestones. Its minimum altitude, 54 meters, is located in the extreme north-west of the town, where a small arm of the Dronne leaves the town.
The climate is classified as “altered oceanic”, a transition zone between oceanic, mountain and semi-continental climates. With climate change, it is predicted that the average temperature will increase and the average rainfall decline.
As of 2017, the number of people aged over 60 (42.1%) was higher than the national (25.5%) and departmental (35.9%) rates. The female population of the town is greater than the male population (55.3%), and higher than the departmental (51.8%) and national (51.6%) rates.