Prefecture of Vienne
Population: 89,500 (200,000 in the Greater Poitiers urban community)
Specialities: farci poitevin, PDO Poitou-Charentes butter, chabichou (cheese), tourteau fromager (cake). Nougatine du Poitou. Broyé du Poitou (dry cake). Haut-Poitou melon.
Personalities: Philip V (King of France), Eleanor of Aquitaine (Queen of England), François Rabelais, Charles Martel (Mayor of the Palais), Michel Foucault (philosopher), Jean-Pierre Raffarin, René Monory, Thierry Breton, Marie-France Garaud (former ministers), Camille Guérin (inventor of the tuberculosis vaccine), Jules Berry (actor), Joël Robuchon (chef). Lionel Charbonnier (football), Maryse Éwange-Épée (athletics), Brian Joubert (ice skating).
Economy: Futuroscope technology park, Poitiers-Biard airport, university, local authorities, CNED, Canopé. Aeronautics (Dassault). Electricity (Saft).
Sport: Stade Poitevin (omnisports). Poitiers Basket 86. Grand Poitiers Handball 86.
Festivals: Poitiers Film Festival. Rencontres Michel Foucault (philosophy). Gamers Assembly. Rencontres gourmandes du Poitou. BRUISME (jazz). Traversées (art). Vox Musica (classical music).
Labels: Ville d'Art et d'Histoire (Town of Art and History).
Websites: www.poitiers.fr, visitpoitiers.fr, www.grandpoitiers.fr
Poitiers and Cycling
The last time the men's Tour de France came to Poitiers: in 2020, Caleb Ewan won ahead of Sam Bennett and Wout van Aert.
Previous Tour de France visits: eight occasions, the last six were departures. No finish since 1978 (Sean Kelly).
Other races: Tour du Poitou-Charentes et de la Vienne, finishing in Poitiers since 1987. Wins by Arnaud Démare in 2014, 2018, 2020, and 2024.
Nearby: Futuroscope visited by the Tour since 1986.
Regional rider: Emmanuelle Merlot (France Télévisions consultant), from Châtellerault, like Sylvain Chavanel.
Sights
Saint-Pierre Cathedral
Construction: 12th and 13th centuries.
Style: Gothic.
History and characteristics: Exceptional size, hall-church shape, flat apse. Begun around 1160 under Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II Plantagenet. Finished end of 13th century. Angevin Gothic style façade with rose window and three portals. Romanesque stained-glass windows, Gothic stalls, Clicquot organ.
Special features: Recently discovered Gothic wall paintings in the south transept.
Listed as: Historic Monument in 1875.
Church of Notre-Dame-la-Grande
Construction: 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th and 21st centuries.
Style: Romanesque.
Characteristics: Iconic façade with sacred frieze. Restored from 1992 to 2004. Interior largely 19th century decoration, choir vault authentically Romanesque.
Listed as: Historic Monument in 1840.
Palace of the Counts of Poitou-Dukes of Aquitaine
Construction: 10th to 18th centuries.
Style: Medieval.
History and characteristics: One of France’s finest medieval civil buildings. Great ceremonial hall known as Salle des Pas Perdus rebuilt before 1200 by the Plantagenets. Became courthouse after the French Revolution.
Listed as: Historic Monument in 1862 and 1930.
Saint-Jean Baptistery
Built in: 4th century.
Characteristics: Oldest Christian monument in Europe. Octagonal baptismal pool. Wall paintings from 11th to 13th centuries. Merovingian sarcophagi.
Listed as: Historic Monument in 1846.
Sainte-Croix Museum
Construction: 1974.
Characteristics: Leading museum in Poitou-Charentes. Prehistory (Grotte de la Marche), Roman antiquity, Romanesque sculpture, Camille Claudel, Mondrian, Bonnard, Vuillard, Sisley, Marquet, etc.
To Eat
Farci poitevin
One of the specialities of Poitiers gastronomy is undoubtedly the farci poitevin, a terrine traditionally prepared with green vegetables (cabbage, sorrel, chard, spinach), chopped and mixed with a stuffing made from bacon, moistened bread and whole eggs. The stuffing, tied tightly inside the cabbage leaves and covered with butter muslin, is slowly cooked in a pot of water flavoured with thyme and bay leaves. Once cooked, the stuffing is cut into slices and eaten hot or cold.