en Bellac

Bellac
Bellac
Subprefecture and commune
	Bridge over the Vincou
	Coat of arms
	Location of Bellac
	Bellac Bellac
	Coordinates: 46°07′23″N 1°03′01″E / 46.1231°N 1.0503°E
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Haute-Vienne
Arrondissement	Bellac
Canton	Bellac
Intercommunality	Haut Limousin en Marche
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Claude Peyronnet
Area 1	24.42 km2 (9.43 sq mi)
Population (2021)	3,596
• Density	150/km2 (380/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	87011 /87300
Elevation	175–301 m (574–988 ft) ; (avg. 245 m or 804 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Bellac (French pronunciation: [bɛlak] ^ⓘ; Occitan: Belac [beˈlak]) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France.

Bellac is where the French author Jean Giraudoux, writer of L'Apollon de Bellac, was born in 1882. His house has been turned into a museum.

Geography

Bellac lies 45 km (28 mi) northwest of Limoges at the confluence of the rivers Gartempe and Vincou [fr], in the Department of Haute-Vienne. Poitiers is 70 km (43 mi) to the northwest, and Angoulême 100 km (62 mi) to the southwest. The hills known as the Monts de Blond [fr] lie immediately to the south.

Administration

Bellac is a sous-préfecture of Haute-Vienne, seat of the arrondissement of Bellac which covers 57 communes. Furthernore, it is part of the canton of Bellac and of the communauté de communes Haut Limousin en Marche.^[3]

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	5,240	—
1975	5,360	+0.32%
1982	5,079	−0.77%
1990	4,924	−0.39%
1999	4,576	−0.81%
2007	4,401	−0.49%
2012	4,211	−0.88%
2017	3,808	−1.99%
Source: INSEE^[4]

Inhabitants are known as Bellachons in French.

Transport

Bellac is 30 km (19 mi) west of the A20 Limoges-Orléans motorway, and lies at a crossroads where the RN145 crosses the RN147. Both these roads had been designated part of the Route Centre-Europe Atlantique [fr] (RCEA) and were thus at risk of being upgraded to motorway. However, the latest thinking is that the RCEA will be re-routed from La Souterraine south down the A20 to Limoges and then via upgraded to the N520/N141 routes to Angoulême and the west.

Classifications

Bellac is classified as a cité de caractère [fr], a village étape, a station verte de vacances [fr], and a station touristique [fr].

Notable people

Jean Giraudoux (1882–1944), writer, dramatist and playwright, was born in Bellac
Charles Silvestre (1889–1948), writer, winner of the Prix Femina in 1926, died in Bellac

Climate

Climate data for Bellac (1996–2010 normals, extremes 1996–2012)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	18.2 (64.8)	23.3 (73.9)	25.2 (77.4)	30.5 (86.9)	32.2 (90.0)	36.9 (98.4)	36.5 (97.7)	39.5 (103.1)	34.2 (93.6)	29.0 (84.2)	22.3 (72.1)	17.7 (63.9)	39.5 (103.1)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	8.1 (46.6)	9.8 (49.6)	13.3 (55.9)	16.0 (60.8)	20.2 (68.4)	24.1 (75.4)	25.6 (78.1)	26.0 (78.8)	22.3 (72.1)	17.6 (63.7)	11.2 (52.2)	8.2 (46.8)	16.9 (62.4)
Daily mean °C (°F)	4.8 (40.6)	5.7 (42.3)	8.3 (46.9)	10.6 (51.1)	14.6 (58.3)	18.0 (64.4)	19.4 (66.9)	19.6 (67.3)	16.0 (60.8)	13.0 (55.4)	7.6 (45.7)	4.9 (40.8)	11.9 (53.4)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	1.6 (34.9)	1.6 (34.9)	3.3 (37.9)	5.2 (41.4)	9.0 (48.2)	12.0 (53.6)	13.1 (55.6)	13.1 (55.6)	9.8 (49.6)	8.4 (47.1)	3.9 (39.0)	1.6 (34.9)	6.9 (44.4)
Record low °C (°F)	−11.9 (10.6)	−17.5 (0.5)	−12.6 (9.3)	−3.4 (25.9)	−1.4 (29.5)	2.9 (37.2)	5.0 (41.0)	3.7 (38.7)	−1.3 (29.7)	−6.9 (19.6)	−10.0 (14.0)	−12.8 (9.0)	−17.5 (0.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	76.4 (3.01)	65.8 (2.59)	73.7 (2.90)	86.5 (3.41)	88.9 (3.50)	64.7 (2.55)	59.9 (2.36)	74.4 (2.93)	62.6 (2.46)	85.4 (3.36)	97.5 (3.84)	86.5 (3.41)	922.3 (36.31)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	13.1	10.1	10.4	12.2	11.7	8.5	9.4	9.3	8.9	11.5	14.7	12.6	132.5
Source: Meteociel^[5]