View source for Earth:Cognac (commune)

{{Infobox French commune
|name                   = Cognac
|commune status         = Subprefecture and commune
|image                  = Cognac stjac.JPG
|caption                = The Saint-Jacques gate in Cognac
|image coat of arms     = Blason de la ville de Cognac (Charente).svg
|arrondissement         = Cognac
|canton                 = Cognac-1 and 2
|INSEE                  = 16102
|postal code            = 16100
|mayor                  = Morgan Berger<ref>{{cite web|title=Répertoire national des élus: les maires|url=https://www.data.gouv.fr/fr/datasets/r/2876a346-d50c-4911-934e-19ee07b0e503|website=data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises|date=2 December 2020|language=fr}}</ref>
|term                   = 2020&ndash;2026
|intercommunality       = CA du Grand Cognac
|coordinates            = {{coord|45.70|-0.33|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
|elevation m            = 27
|elevation min m        = 5
|elevation max m        = 53
|area km2               = 15.5
|population             = {{France metadata Wikidata|population_total}}
|population date        = {{France metadata Wikidata|population_as_of}}
|population footnotes   = {{France metadata Wikidata|population_footnotes}}
}}

'''Cognac''' ({{IPA-fr|kɔɲak|-|Fr-Paris--Cognac.ogg}}; Saintongese: ''Cougnat''; {{lang-oc|Conhac}} {{IPA-oc|kuˈɲak||LL-Q14185 (oci)-Davidgrosclaude-conhac.wav}}) is a commune in the Charente department, southwestern France. Administratively, the commune of Cognac is a subprefecture of the Charente department.

==History==
The town of Cognac was unknown before the ninth century, when it was fortified. During the Hundred Years' War, the town continually changed sides, according to the tides of war. In 1526, it lent its name to the War of the League of Cognac, the military alliance established by King Francis I of France   to fight against the House of Habsburg. As a benefit of the War League of Cognac, King Francis I granted to the town of Cognac the commercial right to participate in the [[Chemistry:Salt|salt]] trade conducted along the river, from which regional Cognac developed into a centre for the production of wine and brandy.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rikard |first1=J |title=Second Hapsburg-Valois War or War of the League of Cognac (1526-30) |url=http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/wars_second_hapsburg_valois.html |website=History of War |access-date=30 January 2019}}</ref>

In November 1651, Cognac was besieged by rebels led by Prince de Condé during the 1648-1653 civil war, the "Fronde"; and the town was relieved in December by a force under Comte d'Harcourt; afterwards, King Louis XIV granted Cognac additional commercial rights.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kenny |first1=Peter Francis |title=Heroes, Villains, and Conflicts |date=2016 |publisher=Xlibris |isbn=978-1514443781 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FB7BCwAAQBAJ&q=siege+of+cognac+1651&pg=PT671 |access-date=30 January 2019 |ref=Harcourt, Henry de Lorraine}}</ref>

[[File:Angoumois.jpg|thumb|350x350px|Cognac in Province of Angoumois (1789)]]
Cognac was part of the historic French province of Angoumois. In 1790, following the {{wipe|French Revolution}} that began the year before, the provinces were abolished and Angoumois became part of the newly created department of Charente.

==Geography==
Cognac is situated on the river Charente between the towns of Angoulême and [[Earth:Saintes, Charente-Maritime|Saintes]]. The majority of the town has been built on the river's left bank, with the smaller right bank area known as the Saint Jacques district. The town is situated on one of the pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela and is home to the French Air Force training base 709. Cognac is {{convert|400|km|sp=us}} southwest of Paris.

==Cognac brandy==
The town gives its name to one of the world's best-known types of brandy or eau de vie. Drinks must be made in certain areas around the town of Cognac and must be made according to strictly defined regulations to be granted the name Cognac.

Cognac is a unique spirit in that it is double-distilled.  This process can be viewed in one of the many "Grande Marque" Cognac houses which all have visitor centres.  Most central in the town are Hennessy, Martell, Otard, Camus and Remy Martin.  About {{convert|15|km|0|abbr=on}} east of Cognac is Jarnac, home to Courvoisier.

There are six vineyard areas around the Cognac area, all of which are within the Appellation Controlee for Cognac, but which are considered to vary in quality from the best growth area of "Grande Champagne" (nothing to do with the Champagne wine region in NE France), through "Petite Champagne" then "Borderies", "Fins Bois", "Bon Bois" and finally "Bois Ordinaire".  The best Cognacs are generally only made using Grande and Petite Champagne grapes, but all Cognac is produced by blending a variety of ''eau de vie'' which can be made from grapes from different locations, and from different vintages.  It is the cellar master's skill that ensures that a brand's Cognac is recognizable regardless of when it is produced, since he can blend multiple ''eaux de vie'' to achieve the right taste for his house.

Different qualities of Cognac are produced by all brands, and include VS ("Very Special"); VSOP ("Very Superior [or, more commonly, "Special", though the Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac specifies "Superior"] Old Pale") and XO ("eXtra Old").  (English terms are still used, since in the early days of Cognac production it was the British who were the main consumers and also became some of the main producers of Cognac, using techniques acquired from the distillation of whisky, etc.)  These are controlled by the length of time the Cognac is allowed to mature in oak barrels, a minimum time being required at each grade level.  The longer the Cognac matures in the barrel the smoother it will generally become.  Once it is bottled no further development takes place.  Most houses still have barrels of Cognac dating back to the 19th century sitting in their cellars waiting for fine blending by the Cellar Master.

==Climate==
<div style="width:82%;">
{{Weather box
|location = Cognac, France (1981–2010 averages)
|metric first = Y
|single line = Y
|Jan record high C = 18.4
|Feb record high C = 22.5
|Mar record high C = 26.2
|Apr record high C = 31.0
|May record high C = 34.0
|Jun record high C = 40.0
|Jul record high C = 40.3
|Aug record high C = 39.6
|Sep record high C = 36.4
|Oct record high C = 30.6
|Nov record high C = 24.7
|Dec record high C = 20.5
|year record high C = 40.1
|Jan high C = 9.4
|Feb high C = 11.0
|Mar high C = 14.4
|Apr high C = 16.9
|May high C = 20.8
|Jun high C = 24.3
|Jul high C = 26.8
|Aug high C = 26.7
|Sep high C = 23.5
|Oct high C = 18.9
|Nov high C = 13.0
|Dec high C = 9.8
|year high C = 18.0
|Jan low C = 2.8
|Feb low C = 2.8
|Mar low C = 4.9
|Apr low C = 6.9
|May low C = 10.6
|Jun low C = 13.6
|Jul low C = 15.3
|Aug low C = 15.0
|Sep low C = 12.3
|Oct low C = 9.8
|Nov low C = 5.5
|Dec low C = 3.3
|year low C = 8.6
|Jan record low C = -17.5
|Feb record low C = -19.4
|Mar record low C = -10.2
|Apr record low C = -2.9
|May record low C = -0.2
|Jun record low C = 3.0
|Jul record low C = 6.4
|Aug record low C = 5.5
|Sep record low C = 2.2
|Oct record low C = -3.8
|Nov record low C = -8.4
|Dec record low C = -14.5
|year record low C = -19.4
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 71.9
|Feb precipitation mm = 52.0
|Mar precipitation mm = 57.7
|Apr precipitation mm = 71.0
|May precipitation mm = 65.1
|Jun precipitation mm = 52.3
|Jul precipitation mm = 48.2
|Aug precipitation mm = 47.3
|Sep precipitation mm = 59.8
|Oct precipitation mm = 81.2
|Nov precipitation mm = 86.3
|Dec precipitation mm = 84.3
|year precipitation mm = 777.1
|Jan precipitation days = 11.7
|Feb precipitation days = 9.2
|Mar precipitation days = 10.1
|Apr precipitation days = 11.3
|May precipitation days = 10.7
|Jun precipitation days = 7.5
|Jul precipitation days = 7.0
|Aug precipitation days = 6.6
|Sep precipitation days = 8.0
|Oct precipitation days = 11.4
|Nov precipitation days = 11.7
|Dec precipitation days = 11.9
|year precipitation days = 117.0
|Jan humidity = 87
|Feb humidity = 82
|Mar humidity = 76
|Apr humidity = 74
|May humidity = 75
|Jun humidity = 72
|Jul humidity = 69
|Aug humidity = 72
|Sep humidity = 76
|Oct humidity = 83
|Nov humidity = 87
|Dec humidity = 88
|year humidity = 
|Jan sun = 83.0
|Feb sun = 111.9
|Mar sun = 162.4
|Apr sun = 180.5
|May sun = 215.9
|Jun sun = 238.4
|Jul sun = 249.9
|Aug sun = 244.8
|Sep sun = 199.2
|Oct sun = 137.3
|Nov sun = 91.2
|Dec sun = 81.4
|year sun = 1995.9
|source 1 = Meteo France<ref name=MFclimat1>{{cite web
| url = http://www.meteofrance.com/climat/france/cognac/16089001/normales
| title = Données climatiques de la station de Cognac
| publisher = Meteo France
| language = fr
| access-date = January 14, 2016}}</ref><ref name=MFclimat2>{{cite web
| url = http://www.meteofrance.com/climat/france/poitou-charentes/regi54/normales
| title = Climat Poitou-Charentes
| publisher = Meteo France
| language = fr
| access-date = January 14, 2016
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181201133550/http://www.meteofrance.com/climat/france/poitou-charentes/regi54/normales
| archive-date = December 1, 2018
| url-status = dead
}}</ref>
|source 2 = Infoclimat.fr (humidity, 1961–1990)<ref name=Infoclimat>{{cite web
| url = http://www.infoclimat.fr/climatologie-07412-cognac-chateaubernard.html
| title = Normes et records 1961-1990: Cognac-Châteaubernard (16) - altitude 30m
| language = fr
| publisher = Infoclimat
| access-date = January 14, 2016}}</ref>
}}
</div>

==Population==

The inhabitants of the town are known in French as ''Cognaçais''.<ref>[https://www.habitants.fr/charente-16 Charente], habitants.fr</ref>

{{Historical populations
|align = none
|cols = 2
|percentages = pagr
|source = EHESS<ref name=ehess>{{Cassini-Ehess|9804|Cognac}}</ref> and INSEE (1968-2017)<ref name=pophist>[https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/4515315?geo=COM-16102#ancre-POP_T1 Population en historique depuis 1968], INSEE</ref>
|graph-pos = bottom
|1793 |2846
|1800 |2827
|1806 |3134
|1821 |2947
|1831 |3409
|1841 |4118
|1846 |4947
|1851 |5835
|1856 |7085
|1861 |8167
|1866 |9412
|1872 |13677
|1876 |14900
|1881 |14087
|1886 |15200
|1891 |17392
|1896 |20228
|1901 |19483
|1906 |19469
|1911 |19188
|1921 |18876
|1926 |17452
|1931 |17404
|1936 |16305
|1946 |17479
|1954 |19026
|1962 |20798
|1968 |22062
|1975 |22237
|1982 |20660
|1990 |19528
|1999 |19534
|2007 |19243
|2012 |18626
|2017 |18825
}}

==Landmarks==
* The Old Town. The town's medieval quarter "Vieux Cognac" runs from the Tours Saint-Jacques, alongside the river, up to the Saint-Léger church. The area contains many unusual buildings, built between the 15th and 18th centuries, situated on narrow cobbled streets. Many contain sculptures of the [[Biology:Salamander|salamander]], the symbol of King François I, as well as gargoyles and richly decorated façades.
* The Château des Valois, an important medieval trading post.
* The Saint-Léger church. Church Exterior<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bernezac.com/Cognac_St_Leger_03.jpg |title=Archived copy |access-date=2007-05-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070420163221/http://www.bernezac.com/Cognac_St_Leger_03.jpg |archive-date=2007-04-20 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.ville-cognac.fr/IMG/cache-200x267/doc-190-200x267.jpg ] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061123052354/http://ville-cognac.fr/IMG/cache-200x267/doc-190-200x267.jpg |date=November 23, 2006 }}</ref>
* The musée d'Art et d'Histoire (art and history museum)
* The musée des arts du Cognac (art museum)
* The Saint-Gobain glassworks and barrelworks
* Cognac Public Garden

==Notable people==
* The [[Chemistry:Glass|glass]]maker Claude Boucher, inventor of the glass-blowing machine in around 1880, lived and worked in Cognac
* The car manufacturer Louis Delâge was born in Cognac in 1874
* Francis I  (king of France between 1515 and 1547) was born in the town's castle in 1494. The town's main square is named after him and a statue of the king, on horseback over his enemies, stands at the centre 
* Paul-Emile Lecoq de Boisbaudran, born in Cognac in 1838, discovered the elements [[Chemistry:Gallium|Gallium]] in 1875 and [[Chemistry:Samarium|Samarium]] in 1878
* Jean Monnet, one of the founding fathers of the [[Social:European Union|European Union]], was born in Cognac in 1888 and ran the Monnet Cognac family-controlled enterprise in the 1920s
* The French adult film star and model François Sagat was born in Cognac.
* The French poet Octavien de Saint-Gelais was born in Cognac in 1468

==Sport==
* US Cognac is the  city's rugby union team.
*Cognac was the start of Stage 19 in the 2007 Tour de France.

==Twin towns—sister cities==
Cognac is twinned with:<ref>{{cite web |title=Les jumelages|url=https://www.ville-cognac.fr/-Les-jumelages-.html|website=ville-cognac.fr|publisher=Cognac|language=fr|access-date=2019-11-13}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
*{{flagicon|BFA}} Boala, Burkina Faso
*{{flagicon|CHN}} Bozhou, China
*{{flagicon|USA}} Denison, United States
*{{flagicon|GER}} Königswinter, Germany
*{{flagicon|SVK}} Michalovce, Slovakia
*{{flagicon|SCO}} Perth, Scotland
*{{flagicon|PER}} Pisco, Peru
*{{flagicon|AZE}} Tovuz, Azerbaijan
*{{flagicon|ESP}} Valdepeñas, Spain
*{{flagicon|CZE}} Vyškov, Czech Republic
{{div col end}}

==Gallery==
{{gallery
|File:Musée des arts du Cognac (Cognac, France).JPG|The Musée des arts du Cognac
|File:The Château des Valois, Cognac, France.JPG|The Château des Valois
|File:The Château des Valois, Cognac France.jpg|The Château des Valois
}}

==See also==
* The [[Earth:Coniacian|Coniacian]] Age of the [[Earth:Cretaceous|Cretaceous]] Period of geological time is named for the city of Cognac
*Communes of the Charente department

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{AmCyc Poster|Cognac}}
*{{official|https://www.ville-cognac.fr/}} {{in lang|fr}}



[[Category:Coniacian| ]]

{{Sourceattribution|Cognac (commune)|1}}