Tonnay-Charente

Tonnay-Charente is a Commune Frenchwoman, located in the department of the Charente-Maritime and the area Poitou-Charentes.

Geography

The town of Tonnay-Charente is located in a Méandre of the Charente.

History

In September 1346, the count de Derby seizes the city (Guerre One hundred Year old). The seat is given by the English in 1348-1349, with large means: ships run in Charente to block the provisioning, Sap the USSR Spanish, and the city is finally taken after October.

Administration

|- | align=right| March 2001 || Jean-Pierre Guillon ||align=" center" | PS ||

Demography

Tourist monuments and places

The suspended bridge

One finds in Tonnay-Charente one of the oldest suspended bridges of Europe. This bridge was inaugurated in 1842 within Louis Dor, who was then chief engineer of the department. Its width is of 23 meters and its length of 623 meters of which 90 meters for the longest span.

The idea had been evoked as of 1831 whereas the Residents of Charente had enough of it to use the vat to join other bank of the river. The first stone was posed the February 18th 1841 and on this occasion, one made strike 200 commemorative medals of which one was embedded in the first block.

After several years of service, the bridge subsided and it was thus decided to subject it to a test. August 21st, 1883, one piled up sand on the apron and before reaching the threshold of test, the apron released. It is only the March 10th 1885 which the bridge was reopened with circulation after being rebuilt by the engineer Ferdinand Arnodin, using novel methods.

In 1934, it was decided to double the capacities of resistance of the bridge.

Today, the bridge is not opened any more with the circulation of the cars. Until August 2004, one could still cross it to foot or with two wheels but since this date, any circulation is prohibited, while waiting for work of restoration (repair of the apron, cables, masonry).

The commercial port

As of the 13th century, one found in Tonnay-Charente a commercial port whose activity was during a long time rather important. Today, the activity of this port is very decreased. It presents the characteristic of a zone of reversal for the boats (called zone of swing): the cargo liner pricks the nose in the mud, and the current of Charente is given the responsability to push the poop to him to turn over it. The port can receive some 120 meters length ships for a Tirant of water of 6,50 meters.

The port is managed by the Chamber of commerce of Rochefort and Saintonge.

Events

In 2004, a telefilm, Three days in June , was turned to Tonnay-Charente. This historical telefilm, which evokes an episode of resistance during the last war, adapted novel a bridge on the Loire puts in scene Elsa, Patrick Catalifo, Etienne Chicot, Laurent Poitrenaux, Guy Marchand, Jean-Louis Foulquier. It was diffused for the first time on the television channel France 2 on September 19th, 2005.

Personalities related to the commune

At the 17th century, Madam de Montespan, mistress of the king Louis XIV, remained with many recoveries in the castle. This one, always upright, is currently the property of the Croix-Rouge.
Louis Jacob, captain, inventor of the semaphoric signals in the Navy and Minister for the Navy and the Colonies in 1834, is native of Tonnay.
Jean-Charles Descubes, archbishop of Rouen.

Twinning

See too

Articles of Wikipédia

Old communes of the Common Charente-Maritime
of the Charente-Maritime
List of war memorials French surmounted by a cock

External bonds

Pas of official site of the city at May 31st, 2006
Informations in the bases structures and inheritance of the ministry for the culture (Reached the 9/20/2006):

Image, bases memory: 27 notes
Objects, bases Palissy: 4 notes
Building, bases Mérimée: 9 notes

Port commercial Rochefort Tonnay-Charente
Some photographs of the suspended bridge
old Postcards of the bridge of Tonnay-Charente

Sources of the article

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