La Rochelle

La Rochelle

a port in W France, on the Bay of Biscay: a Huguenot stronghold until its submission through famine to Richelieu's forces after a long siege (1627--28). Pop.: 76 584 (1999)

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La Rochelle 

a city and port in western France, on the Bay of Biscay. Administrative center of the department of Charente Maritime. Population, 75,000 (1968). The freight turnover of the port is more than 3 million tons. It is a center of the fishing industry and of fish processing. Other industries include shipbuilding, aircraft and auto production, and textile manufacture. The city has an arsenal.

La Rochelle is first mentioned in 11th-century sources. In the 16th century it was the most important Huguenot stronghold. Some medieval and early Renaissance buildings have been preserved in the Old Town. Remains of the fortifications of the old port—the towers of la Chaîne and St. Nicolas, both dating from the second half of the 14th century—have also been preserved. The main architectural monuments are the tower of La Lanterne (middle of the 15th century), the Porte de la Grosse-Horloge (13th and 14th centuries, completed in the 17th and 18th centuries), and the Cathedral of St. Louis (rebuilt in the 17th and 18th centuries, architects J. and J. A. Gabriel) with its 14th-century tower. Noteworthy 18th-century buildings are the Hôtel de la Bourse, Hôtel d’Orbigny, and Hôtel Fleuriau. There is a museum of fine arts in the former bishop’s palace.

REFERENCES

Crozet, R. La Rochelle. Paris [1957].