Saint-Émilion

Jurisdiction of Saint-Émilion
UNESCO World Heritage Site
	Monolithic church of Saint-Émilion and its bell tower
Criteria	Cultural: iii, iv
Reference	932
Inscription	1999 (23rd Session)
Area	7,847 ha
Buffer zone	5,101 ha

Saint-Émilion
Saint-Émilion
Commune
	An aerial view of Saint-Émilion
	Coat of arms
	show Location of Saint-Émilion
	Saint-Émilion Show map of FranceShow map of Nouvelle-AquitaineShow all
	Coordinates: 44°53′37″N 0°09′17″W / 44.8936°N 0.1547°WCoordinates: 44°53′37″N 0°09′17″W / 44.8936°N 0.1547°W
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Gironde
Arrondissement	Libourne
Canton	Les Coteaux de Dordogne
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Bernard Lauret
Area 1	27.02 km2 (10.43 sq mi)
Population (Jan. 2018)	1,866
• Density	69/km2 (180/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	33394 /33330
Elevation	3–107 m (9.8–351.0 ft) ; (avg. 23 m or 75 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Saint-Émilion (French pronunciation: [sɛ̃.t‿emiljɔ̃]; Gascon: Sent Milion) is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in Southwestern France. In 2016, it had a population of 1,938.

In the heart of the country of Libournais (the area around Libourne), in a region of wine hills, Saint-Emilion is a medieval city located at the crossroads of Bordeaux, Saintonge and Périgord.

History[]

Saint-Émilion's history goes back to prehistoric times. The town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with fascinating Romanesque churches and ruins stretching all along steep and narrow streets.

The Romans planted vineyards in what was to become Saint-Émilion as early as the 2nd century. In the 4th century, the Latin poet Ausonius lauded the fruit of the bountiful vine.

Saint-Émilion, previously called Ascumbas,^[3] was renamed after the Breton monk Émilion (d.767^[4]), a travelling confessor, who settled in a hermitage carved into the rock there in the 8th century. The monks who followed him started up the commercial wine production in the area.

Geography[]

Saint-Émilion is located 35 km (22 mi) northeast of Bordeaux, between Libourne and Castillon-la-Bataille.

Population[]

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1800	2,761	—
1851	2,828	+2.4%
1861	3,014	+6.6%
1872	3,059	+1.5%
1881	3,034	−0.8%
1891	3,233	+6.6%
1901	3,392	+4.9%
1911	3,408	+0.5%
1921	3,165	−7.1%
1931	3,367	+6.4%
1946	3,232	−4.0%

Year	Pop.	±%
1954	3,252	+0.6%
1962	3,335	+2.6%
1968	3,403	+2.0%
1975	3,323	−2.4%
1982	3,010	−9.4%
1990	2,799	−7.0%
1999	2,345	−16.2%
2006	2,124	−9.4%
2007	2,090	−1.6%
2008	2,020	−3.3%
2012	1,931	−4.4%

Sights[]

Romanesque church
Monolithic church, carved from a limestone cliff

Wine[]

Saint-Émilion is one of the principal red wine areas of Bordeaux along with the Médoc, Graves and Pomerol. The region is much smaller than the Médoc and adjoins Pomerol. As in Pomerol and the other appellations on the right bank of the Gironde, the primary grape varieties used are the Merlot and Cabernet Franc, with relatively small amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon also being used by some châteaux.

Saint Émilion wines were not included in the 1855 Bordeaux classification. The first formal classification in Saint-Émilion was made in 1955. Unlike the 1855 classification, it is regularly revised.

Panoramic view of Saint-Émilion, July 2016

Panoramic view of Saint-Émilion, August 2012

Saint-Émilion Jazz Festival[]

Since 2012, Saint-Émilion hosts a jazz festival at the end of July.^[5]

Personalities[]

References[]

^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.
^ "Populations légales 2018". INSEE. 28 December 2020.
^ "The Monk Émilion". saint-emilion tourisme. Retrieved Sep 30, 2018.
^ "Bordeaux". Catholic Encyclopedia. Retrieved Sep 30, 2018.
^ "Saint-Emilion Jazz Festival - Site Officiel | Éditions passées". www.saint-emilion-jazz-festival.com (in French). Retrieved 2018-08-02.

External links[]

[1] "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.

[2] "Populations légales 2018". INSEE. 28 December 2020.

[3] "The Monk Émilion". saint-emilion tourisme. Retrieved Sep 30, 2018.

[4] "Bordeaux". Catholic Encyclopedia. Retrieved Sep 30, 2018.

[5] "Saint-Emilion Jazz Festival - Site Officiel | Éditions passées". www.saint-emilion-jazz-festival.com (in French). Retrieved 2018-08-02.

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show v t World Heritage Sites in France
List of World Heritage Sites in France
Île-de-France	Palace and Park of Versailles Fontainebleau Palace and Park Paris: Banks of the Seine Provins
Parisian basin	Amiens Cathedral Belfries of Belgium and France¹ Bourges Cathedral Champagne hillsides, houses and cellars Chartres Cathedral Climats and terroirs of Burgundy Reims: Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Former Abbey of Saint-Rémi, Palace of Tau Abbey of Fontenay Le Havre Mont-Saint-Michel and its Bay Vézelay Church and hill
Nord-Pas-de-Calais	Belfries of Belgium and France¹ Nord-Pas de Calais Mining Basin
East	Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains and Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans Nancy: Place Stanislas, Place de la Carrière and Place d'Alliance Strasbourg: Grande Île, Neustadt Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps³
West	Abbey Church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
South West	Episcopal city, Albi Port of the Moon, Bordeaux Prehistoric sites and decorated caves of the Vézère valley Pyrénées – Mont Perdu² Saint-Émilion
Centre East	Chaîne des Puys Chauvet Cave Lyon
Mediterranean	Roman and Romanesque monuments, Arles Carcassonne citadel Gulf of Porto: Calanches de Piana, Gulf of Girolata, Scandola Reserve Avignon: Papal Palace, Episcopal Ensemble, Avignon Bridge Pont du Gard Orange: Roman Theatre and environs, Triumphal Arch
Multiple regions	The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier Canal du Midi Fortifications of Vauban Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes-sur-Loire Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe⁴
Overseas departments and territories	French Austral Lands and Seas Lagoons of New Caledonia Pitons, cirques and remparts of Réunion Taputapuātea
¹Shared locally with other region/s and with Belgium ²Shared with Spain ³Shared with Austria, Germany, Italy, Slovenia and Switzerland ⁴Shared with Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and Ukraine

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