Last modified: 2024-04-06 by olivier touzeau
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Flag of Soulac-sur-Mer - Image by Olivier Touzeau, 25 April 2022
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Soulac-sur-Mer, commonly known as Soulac (Solac), (2,922 inhabitants in 2021; 2,889 ha) is a commune in the department of Gironde. It's a seaside resort on Côte d'Argent, in the peninsula of Médoc, at 12 km from Royan.
Soulac, probably the old Gallo-Roman “Noviamagus” engulfed by the ocean around the year 580, was a considerable town during the time of Roman domination. Its port, frequented by all the peoples from Aquitaine, Bituriges, Médulés, received valuable goods from England and Phenicia. Around the 6th century, the Roman city disappeared under the ocean. The modern history of Soulac can be reconstructed from the 11th century, when Benedictine monks settled there. The existing chapel was replaced in the 12th century by the Basilica "Notre Dame de la Fin des Terres". At that time, the sands of the Landes had not yet been fixed by the maritime pine plantations and, in 1747, the Basilica was covered with sand. Driven by a desire to revive its past fervor, the town of Soulac began work to remove sand and restore the Basilica in 1858. It was definitively returned to worship in 1867.
The town of Soulac-les-Bains began to grow between 1857 and 1864: at the time when sea bathing became a common practice throughout Europe, Soulac revived these practices that were both recreational and medical. In 1861, the first bathing establishments were among the major places in the region and the arrival of the railway marked the opening up of Soulac in 1874. From 1890 to 1940, the town planning of the current city took shape: the station brought together the dwellings in a vast new site, the forest of the Landes de Gascogne, and thus offered the image of a landscaped urban park. The spacious gardens create a transition between the social space of the street and the intimacy of the habitat. Soulac will thus pass from Soulac-les-Bains to Soulac-sur-Mer.
Olivier Touzeau, 25 April 2022
The flag of Soulac-sur-Mer is white with the current logo, adopted in 2018. The blue vertical stripes are inspired by the famous beach tents: photo (2018), photo (2021).
Olivier Touzeau, 25 April 2022