Marmande is located 35 km north-west of Agen, on the southern railway from Bordeaux to Sète. The town is situated at the confluence of the Trec with the Garonne on the right bank of the latter river, which is crossed at this point by a suspension bridge. There is a second bridge to the west of Marmande which connects the D933 from the Toulouse/Bordeaux motorway to the new by-pass, opened in July 2009, which now leads to Bergerac and the département of the Dordogne. Marmande ranks 481st in terms of population for the whole of France. A noted producer of tomatoes, a festival dedicated to tomatoes is held annually in July.
History
Marmande was a bastide founded about 1195 on the site of a more ancient town by Richard Cœur de Lion, who granted it a liberal measure of self-government. Its position on the banks of the Garonne made it an important place of toll. It soon passed into the hands of the counts of Toulouse, and was three times besieged and taken during the Albigensian Crusade, its capture by Amaury de Montfort in 1219 being followed by a massacre of the inhabitants. It was united to the French crown under Louis IX. A short occupation by the English in 1447, an unsuccessful siege by Henry IV in 1577 and its resistance of a month to a division of Wellington's army in 1814, are some important events in its subsequent history.
Sights
Apart from the administrative offices, the most notable building is the church of Notre-Dame, which dates from the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries. The windows of the nave, the altarpiece of the 18th century and, in particular, the Renaissancecloister adjoining the south side, are some of its most interesting features. The town is host to the Garorock music festival.
Economy
The town is renowned for its tomato production. The average income per household is 16,482 €/year.
Hubert Ruffe : born in Penne-d'Agenais29 August 1899, died 28 August 1995 ; active in the 1920s in defence of peasants, he was elected as a communist deputy for the Marmande constituency in 1946 and re-elected to this post seven times between 1946 and 1981. He appeared in 1974 in Jean-Daniel Simon' film Il pleut toujours où c'est mouillé, playing himself and describing the difficulties faced by peasants during that period.
Renaud Jean : born in Marmande ; leader of peasant syndicalism in France during the interwar period and first communist peasant deputy, in 1920, for the Marmande constituency. He was re-elected.
Léopold Faye : born 16 November 1828 in Marmande ; died 5 September 1900 in Birac. He had been mayor of Marmande, then occupied national offices : Minister of public instruction, religion and fine arts, then Minister of Agriculture in 1889.
Francesca Solleville : French singer, grand daughter of the Italian socialist Luigi Campolonghi, spent part of her childhood in Marmande. In 1990 she wrote a song called "Marmande" for her album Je suis ainsi.
