The capital of the Charente region has many treasures to offer its visitors: Saint-Pierre Cathedral, the resurgence of the river Touvre, Romanesque buildings... not forgetting the Festival international comic strip festival. If you're a lover of heritage, culture and gentle roaming, welcome to the Angoulême region.
On leaving Angoulême station, visitors are confronted with two recent monuments that are not universally appreciated by the people of Angoulême, but which, according to the town councillors, ensure a happy continuation of the literary tradition through the proliferation of comic strips! This new popular art form, which has seen the emergence of so many talents, is celebrated here with Uderzo and Goscinny to whom these two monuments are dedicated, the merry men who created the Gallo-Roman mythology of Asterix and Obelix, whose colossal international success (393 million copies sold) made their fortune as well as that of Hachette, and is still the stuff of dreams for all the artists and comic strip fans who arrived by train.
In the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, prefecture of Charente, is steeped in an artistic and literary tradition dating back to the 11th century. Situated on a spur overlooking a meander of the Charente and its confluences with the Touvre and Anguienne rivers, the town has earned the nickname of the "balcony of the south-west", among other nicknames. Capital of the Angoumois region before the french revolution, the town has long been a coveted stronghold due to its position at the crossroads of major river and road routes. From its tumultuous past, the city, well protected by its rocky plateau, has inherited a remarkable historical, religious and urban heritage that attracts many visitors and tourists. Today, Angoulême is one of the most industrialised cities between the Loire and Garonne rivers. It is also a commercial and administrative city, with a university centre and a remarkably lively cultural life, dominated by the famous annual International Comics Festival, which is making a major contribution to the city's international reputation, and the Francophone Film Festival and the Ramparts tour for classic car enthusiasts. The region's main areas of excellence are mechatronics and the industrial processes of the future, hydrogen, cultural and creative industries, digital technology, and leather and luxury goods, with the redevelopment of industrial and commercial wasteland remaining a major challenge. Finally, the town is proud of its famous children, such as Charles d'Orléans (Count of Angoulême and father of François I).
A cultural melting pot
Angoulême may have been flattered to be referred to as the New Athens, a literary reputation that dates back to the 11th century and has developed over the centuries. Recognised in 2019 as a "Creative City" by UNESCO for its contribution to literature, this literary tradition has evolved right up to the present day: in the 11th century, the city was already imbued with a literary reputation thanks to Adhémar de Chabannes, a scholar and chronicler whose writings contributed to its intellectual renown. In the 16th century, Angoulême became an important paper-making centre. The manufacture of paper encouraged cultural exchange and the spread of knowledge, and Angoulême vellum became an international benchmark: today, you can still visit a mill on the river Charente - the orchard mill of Puymoyen - where rag-based paper pulp was beaten and kneaded before being dried into sheets, the future support for so many letters and books... But this cottage industry withered and then disappeared.
History of the county of Angoulême
In 1308, on the death of Gui I de Lusignan, the County of Angoulême reverted to the Crown of France. It was given to Louis d'Orléans, brother of King Charles VI, in 1394 and then passed on to his son Jean d'Orléans (1400-1467), grandfather of Marguerite d'Angoulême and François I.
The Good Count Jean d'Angoulême enlarged the château magnificently on his return from English captivity in the mid-15th century.
The town is marked by the House of Valois, which succeeded the Capetians and ruled the kingdom of France from 1328 to 1589, actively supporting literature and the arts in Angoulême. Marguerite de Navarre, born Marguerite d'Angoulême (also known as Marguerite de Valois-Angoulême), played a key role in the 16th century. Here are just a few aspects of her great influence and her work: she exerted a profound influence in diplomacy, showed a certain interest in new ideas, protected writers such as Rabelais and Bonaventure des Périers and encouraged artists at the French Court.
The poems of Marguerite de Navarre, known today as L'Heptaméron, are collected under the title of Marguerites de la Marguerite des princesses,, published in Lyon in 1547. Sister of François I, she exerted great influence over him throughout her life and became Queen of Navarre by her second marriage in 1527. Her daughter Jeanne d'Albret was the mother of Henri de Bourbon, the future Henri IV, King of France and Navarre. After the disastrous battle of Pavia (1525), Marguerite travelled to Spain to console her unfortunate brother and revive his courage. Her pleas for the prisoner's freedom failed with the inflexible Charles V, but she nonetheless won the admiration of him and his court for her eloquence, grace and exceptional education. She was fluent in several languages, principally Spanish, Italian and English. Greek, Latin and even Hebrew were no strangers to him. It was probably after her return to France that she managed to secure the King's release.
Angoulême, the new mecca for comics
Created by François Boucq and executed by muralist Moon, the mural pays tribute to the father of Asterix and Obelix. At the centre of this huge 200 m2 fresco, Albert UDERZO is seated at his drawing table, from which his heroes emerge..
In 1974, faced with difficulties in the publishing industry, Angoulême and its immoderately ambitious mayor concocted the concept of a first International Comics Festival. This event, which quickly became an annual one, encouraged the growth of the industry both locally and in France, and the festival went on to play a key role in the town's economy. Towards international recognition, the city also organises other festivals, including the Francophone Film Festival and the Courant 3D Festival.
Today, Angoulême has become a centre of excellence for the arts and the creation of comic strips. Local initiatives support artists and writers, and art is integrated into the streets through frescoes and murals. In short, Angoulême has preserved and enriched its literary tradition, becoming a creative and cultural centre of international renown.
The Angoulême Festival jury awards a Grand Prize to a writer for his or her body of work from the first edition in 1974. This honorary prize, which is not endowed, entitles the winner to an exhibition at the following festival. In the early years, the jury focused on classic Franco-Belgian comic strip authors (Franquin, Pellos, Jijé and Marijac) and American (Will Eisner, who was considered to have given up comics). In 1978, the prize was awarded to a young contemporary author, Jean-Marc Reiser (36 years), then in 1980 Fred (48), a pillar of the magazine Pilot.
From 1981 onwards, the previous year's Grand Prize winner presided over the jury. This system, which lasted until 1988, sometimes enabled the previous year's Grand Prix winner to direct the choice of his or her successor towards authors who were friends or close associates: the winners in the 1980s were all from Pilot (Jean Giraud/Moebius, Mézières, Tardi, Lob, Bilal and Druillet) or leading authors of French adult comics (Gillon and Forest). From Jean Giraud, the winner of the 1981 prize, who designed the poster for the 1982 festival, is also responsible for designing the poster for the following year's festival. These two developments mark the growing involvement of the Grand Prix in the festival. In June 1982, the former Grand Prizes met at the initiative of the festival to designate a special tenth anniversary prize, which was awarded to Claire Bretécher, who co-presided the 1983 festival and was awarded the 1982 Grand Prize Paul Gillon and was given an exhibition.
Although the festival was intended to be international, for a long time the majority of the Angoulême Grand Prix was awarded to Franco-Belgian comics : Until 2010, only four of the 42 winners of the Grand Prize or a Special Prize were not French-speaking - and the French far outnumbered the Belgians. Since 2011, however, the prize has become much more international, with four Americans and three Japanese winners. The prize has been criticised for not having been awarded to anyone Japanese author despite the importance of mangas in France; however, three have been awarded since 2013. With a median age of 52, the prize rewards a career, whereas the golden fawn is more a case of an author "in the making". Only five women (Claire Bretécher in 1982, Florence Cestac in 2000, Rumiko Takahashi in 2019, Julie Doucet in 2022 and Posy Simmonds in 2024). The low number of women winners has also been the subject of controversy.
Benjamin Rabier, the illustrious universal illustrator of the comical and extraordinary lives of animals, and creator of the image of La-vache-qui-rit, deserves his place in the pantheon of the geniuses of this art form celebrated in this museum of comics, which boasts thousands of original plates (fans will be aware of the value that some of these works can fetch in auction rooms, i.e. several hundred thousand euros!)
An eventful history of the Château des Ducs d'Angoulême
From the 10th to the 13th century, the Counts of Angoulême, the Taillefer family and the Lusignan family strengthened the town's defences and extended them to include the Saint-Martial district. In 1308, on the death of Gui I de Lusignan, the county of Angoulême reverted to the French crown. It was given to Louis d'Orléans, brother of King Charles VI, in 1394 and then passed on to his son Jean d'Orléans, grandfather of Marguerite d'Angoulême and François I.
The construction of Angoulême's current town hall on the site of the former Valois' castle gave rise to a heated debate between Paul Dabadie, the architect in charge of the works, and members of Archaeology and History Society of Charente (SAHC). Mr Dabadie wanted to demolish the château immediately, but the archaeological society, whose mission is to ensure the conservation of the country's historic monuments, expressed its support for the building.
Built between 1858 and 1869 in a style that is, to say the least, "eclectic", the château is largely inspired by medieval aesthetics, with a few references to the Renaissance, neo-Gothic style and Classicism. All that remains are the Lusignan keep (13th century) and the Valois tower (15th century), historic elements that have been saved with difficulty, drowned in the massive eclecticism of Mr Dabadie's official and administrative architecture, which was more successful in the very expensive renovation work on St Peter's Basilica.
Fans of provincial historical details should be aware that, following a regional competition held in Angoulême on 17 May 1877, the statue of Marguerite de Valois by M. Badiou de Latronchère was unveiled and donated by the artist to the town, before being erected in the square in front of the new town hall, where its last admirers still gather. Despite muted opposition from a number of detractors, including Prosper Mérimée, inspector of historical monuments, two historic speeches were made at this solemn celebration, one by Mr Mathieu Bodet, former Minister of Finance and President of the Charente General Council, the other by Mr Babinet de Rencogne, town archivist and President of the department's Archaeological and Historical Society.
Saint-Pierre Cathedral
Work on Saint Peter's Cathedral began in 1100 under the impetus of Bishop Girard and has been virtually uninterrupted ever since, a destiny of great architectural works that each new generation tends to preserve or... improve, apart from its transformation into a temple of Reason during the Revolution. Its main façade, richly decorated with small sculpted scenes, often not very peaceful, is seen by some as a foreshadowing of the city's future role in the spread of comics. Some of these were carved around 1118-1119, the date that corresponds to Zaragoza's return to the reconquest of Spain against Saracens. This victory is illustrated by two scenes from the Roland's Song which also recount Roland's victory at Saragossa. The left-hand side of the frieze illustrates the equestrian combat of Bishop Turpin. In the centre: the king, wearing chain mail and a mitre, against the giant Abisme, whom he pierces with his spear. In the centre: a gonfanon then right, Roland, nephew of Charlemagne, continues Marsile, the King of Saragossa, cuts off his opponent's arm with his sword, his horse having already turned away. Then, in the next scene, Marsilio falls before the open gate of Saragossa.
The treasure by Jean-Michel Othoniel
The project to showcase the treasures of Angoulême Cathedral was entrusted for the scenography to the sculptor Jean-Michel Othoniel, as part of a public artistic commission, supported by sponsorship from Engie. The treasure is housed in the Gothic chapel of Saint-Thibaud, located along the eastern wall of the south transept, as well as two rooms on the first floor of this chapel, which was converted from the remains of the bell tower destroyed by cannon fire by the Huguenots in 1588. The Wars of Religion shook the Angoulême region for some thirty years (Ravaillac, the Huguenot regicide of the "renegade" king, was a native of Angoulème). The "tour" is divided into "3 stations", each corresponding to a theme: the Lapidary, the Commitment, the Marvellous. The artist has completely transformed the space, and is presenting nearly 150 restored objects of sacred art from all over the diocese.
All the necessary explanations and interpretations of the artist's will and talent are elegantly conveyed by the suave voice of Marie Reine Bernard, a DRAC-accredited guide whose presence is compulsory for the visit, which must be booked in advance.
In this priestly bric-a-brac, which brings together so many objects of worship, a reliquary created by the artist to house a small bone, a modest relic of Saint Pierre Aumaître, a priest from Charente who was martyred in Korea in 1866 and canonised in 1984.
This moving relic is is to be compared with the the gigantic Turiasaurus tibia discovered in Charente by doctoral student Maxime Lasseron and exhibited alongside a number of other artefacts in the museum curated by the media-savvy palaeo-archaeologist Jean-François Tournepiche.
A few black anecdotes from history
Criminal cases in Charente (1793 - 1818) During the revolutionary turmoil, a gang of criminals known by the nickname "chauffeurs" committed numerous crimes in the countryside around Angoulême. These bandits used brutal methods, such as burning their victims' feet to find out where they were hiding their money..
The Auberge Sainte-Barbe One of the leaders of this gang, originally from Saintes, continued his criminal activities during the Empire at the Auberge Sainte-Barbe, near Angoulême.
Siege of Angoulême by the Vikings (848) In the middle of the 9th century, Angoulême was raided and pillaged by the Vikings, who travelled up the Charente and pillaged the town.
Comic strip exhibitions at the Cité internationale de la bande dessinée et de l'image
The permanent exhibition "Croquez"! Comics put their foot in it", until 10 November 2024, exploring the relationship between food and comics... Bon appétit!
Riad Sattouf, L'Arabe du futur œuvre-monde : This is one of the last opportunities to see this exhibition, as it is in its final days.
Thierry Smolderen "the script is a bricolage" This exhibition sheds light on the process of creating a comic strip script.
La Cerise turns 20 Celebrating the 20th anniversary of La Cerise, this exhibition is also in its final days.
Treasures from the collections From 30 May 2024, this exhibition will showcase rare and precious items from the Cité's collections.
For more information on timetables and prices, visit the official website. International City of Comics and Images https://www.citebd.org/
Text and Photos : Sylvain Grandadam
