Bellac

Bellac (Occitan: Belac) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Limousin region in western France.

Inhabitants are known as Bellachons. This is where the French Jean Giraudoux, writer of L'Apollon de Bellac, was born in 1882. His house has been turned into a museum.

Geographic Situation

Bellac lies 45 km to the North West of Limoges at the confluence of the rivers Gartempe and the Vincou, in the Department of Haute-Vienne. Poitiers is 70 km to the north west, and Angoulême 100 km to the south-west. The hills known as the Monts de Blond lie immediately to the south.

Administration

Bellac is a sous-préfecture of Haute-Vienne, governing 8 cantons and 63 communes.

Transport Links

Bellac is 30 km 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 RCEA (Route Centre Europe L'Atlantique) and were thus under 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 upgrades to the N520 / N141 routes to Angoulême and the west.