Authon Ébéon

Geography

Authon-Ébéon is located in the north-east of the department of Charente-Maritime some 25 km north-east of Saintes and 20 km south-east of Saint-Jean-d'Angély and is in the former province of Saintonge. The village is at the crossroads of the D120 from Sainte-Même in the north to Migron in the south and the D134 from Brizambourg in the west to Courcerac in the east. The D129 also forms the north-western border of the commune. Apart from the village there are the hamlets of Bargagne in the south and Ebeon in the north. The commune is mostly farmland with some small scattered forests.

Geology and terrain

Geologically the commune is on a limestone plateau from the Tithonian period (formerly called the Portlandian).

The commune vineyards are located in the Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) cognac zone for Cru des Fins Bois.

Hydrography

Authon-Ébéon is in the Drainage basin of the Charente. Authon is crossed by the Dandelot which feeds the castle moat. It joins the Antenne, a tributary of the Charente, just downstream of Cognac.

History

Ébéon was along the Saintes-Aulnay-Poitiers Roman road, along which is the "Ébéon beacon" (also called the Pyramid).

Authon was the seat of a fief held by the Authon family from 1130 to 1450. The Motte-and-bailey castle was 100 metres from the present castle.

Seguin d'Authon, a vassal of the Counts of Taillebourg, was a Crusader in 1130 and Roland d'Authon was a companion of Saint Louis in the Holy Land. Seguin, who died in 1395, was Archbishop of Tours.

Jean d'Authon (1467-1527) was chaplain and official historian for King Louis XII. Antoine (1466-1546) was a corsair. In the early 17th century the barons of Authon were hereditary seneschals of Saintonge.

In 1627 Jean d'Authon was killed in a duel and his widow Judith de Nosan sold the barony and the land at Ébéon that was attached to it. It was redeemed by her mother who bequeathed it to her grandson.

In 1651, during the Fronde, Condé took the castle and imprisoned Jean-Seguin d'Authon.

The state of the parishes of 1686 show that the parish of Authon had the Baron of Authon as lord and the parish of Esbuon had 25 fires and Mr. Naussay as lord. The land in the two parishes was difficult and produced two-thirds cereals and one third wine.

In 1791 Authon was looted and burned and the north wing of the castle disappeared.

The communes of Authon and Ébéon were created in 1793 in the department of Lower Charente which became Charente-Maritime in 1941. They were part of the district of Saint-Jean-d'Angély then in its arrondissement in 1801, then passed to Saintes arrondissement in 1926 before returning to that of Saint-Jean-d'Angély in 1943. After having been part of the Canton of Brisambourg in 1793, it joined the Caton of Saint-Hilaire-de-Villefranche in 1801.

By a decree dated 12 December 1972 with effect from 1 January 1973, Ebéon joined Authon to form the commune Authon-Ébéon.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

(Not all data is known)

Together with nine other communes the commune is part of the Canton of Saint-Hilaire-de-Villefranche and with the commune of Écoyeux belongs to the Community of communes of the Canton of Saint-Hilaire-de-Villefranche.

Taxation

Taxation is at a rate of 11.97% for housing tax, 16.63% for developed land, 54.30% for undeveloped, and 15% for business tax plus the community of communes fee on all four taxes, respectively 2.50%, 4.57%, 10.99% and 3.24% gives the total, before adding for the department and the region, of 14.47% for housing, 21.20% for developed land, 65.29% for undeveloped land, and 18.24% business tax (2007 figures).

Demography

In 2010 the commune had 390 inhabitants. The evolution of the number of inhabitants is known from the population censuses conducted in the commune since 1793. From the 21st century, a census of communes with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants is held every five years, unlike larger communes that have a sample survey every year.

N.B. Prior to 1975 the table shows the total populations for the two communes.

Distribution of Age Groups

The population of the town is relatively old. The ratio of persons above the age of 60 years (34.2%) is higher than the national average (21.6%) and the departmental average (28.1%). Unlike national and departmental allocations, the male population of the town is greater than the female population (51.8% against 48.4% nationally and 48.2% at the departmental level).

Percentage Distribution of Age Groups in Authon-Ébéon and Charente-Maritime Department in 2010

Sources:

Economy

A trade in brooms existed in the 19th century.

Currently the economy is primarily agricultural with grapes, plant nurseries, organic crops, and cattle pastures.

The monthly fair is on the third Monday in the month.

The commune has 145 employable people with an unemployment rate of 12.7%.

Of the 145 employable people, 81 are men and 64 are women of which 98 are employees and 47 are not.

Civil heritage

The commune has a number of buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments:

Religious heritage

The commune has one religious building that is registered as an historical monument:

Facilities

The primary school is in the church square at Authon.

There is a post office at Rue de la Poste in Authon.

The closest doctors and nurses are at Matha. Clinics and hospitals are at Cognac, Saint-Jean-d'Angély, and Saintes.

Local life

The harvest festival is held on the last Sunday of October.

Notable people linked to the commune