Rochefort lies on the river Charente, close to its outflow into the Atlantic Ocean. It is about 30 km southeast of La Rochelle. Rochefort station has rail connections to La Rochelle, Nantes and Bordeaux.
Another infrastructure of early Rochefort from 1766 was its bagne, a high-security penal colony involving hard labour. Bagnes were then common fixtures in military harbors and naval bases, such as Toulon or Brest, because they provided free labor. During the Jacobin period of the French Revolution (1790–95), over 800 Roman Catholic priests and other clergy who refused to take the anti-Papal oath of the "Civil Constitution of the Clergy" were put aboard a fleet of prison ships in Rochefort harbour, where most died due to inhumane conditions.
Rochefort is a notable example of 17th-century "ville nouvelle" or new town, which means its design and building resulted from a political decree. The reason for building Rochefort was to a large extent that royal power could hardly depend on rebellious ProtestantLa Rochelle, which Cardinal Richelieu had to besiege a few decades earlier. Well into the 20th century, Rochefort remained primarily a garrison town. The tourist industry, which had long existed due to the town's spa, gained emphasis in the 1990s.
Population
Historical population
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1793
20,874
—
1800
15,000
−4.61%
1806
14,615
−0.43%
1821
12,389
−1.10%
1831
14,040
+1.26%
1836
15,441
+1.92%
1841
20,077
+5.39%
1846
21,738
+1.60%
1851
24,330
+2.28%
1856
28,998
+3.57%
1861
30,212
+0.82%
1866
30,151
−0.04%
1872
28,299
−1.05%
1876
27,012
−1.16%
1881
27,854
+0.62%
1886
31,256
+2.33%
1891
33,334
+1.30%
1896
34,392
+0.63%
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1901
36,458
+1.17%
1906
36,694
+0.13%
1911
35,019
−0.93%
1921
29,473
−1.71%
1926
28,275
−0.83%
1931
26,452
−1.32%
1936
29,482
+2.19%
1946
29,472
−0.00%
1954
30,858
+0.58%
1962
28,648
−0.92%
1968
29,226
+0.33%
1975
28,155
−0.53%
1982
26,167
−1.04%
1990
25,561
−0.29%
1999
25,797
+0.10%
2009
25,317
−0.19%
2014
24,300
−0.82%
2020
23,410
−0.62%
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.
Noteworthy buildings of the original naval establishment include:
a hospital, incorporating a School of Naval Medicine (now a museum)
the Arsenal with a monumental gateway and the National Navy Museum (Musée National de la Marine)
the Rope Factory (corderie), at over 370 metres long for centuries the longest manufacturing building in the world
three dry docks (radoubs) for shipbuilding and repair
a cannon foundry (not open to the public)
Other sights include:
a rare transporter bridge (pont transbordeur), consisting of a high level bridge containing a transport mechanism from which a ferry platform is suspended. This bridge, the Rochefort-Martrou Transporter Bridge, built in 1900, is the only remaining one in France and one of only eight still in service world-wide
the municipal theatre (la Coupe d'Or)
the railway station
Saint-Louis church
Pierre Loti's house (closed indefinitely pending completion of renovation work)
Museums of Naval Aeronautics, old-time trades (Commerces d'Autrefois), and local archaeology (la Vieille Paroisse)
The Young Girls of Rochefort film directed by Jacques Demy with Catherine Deneuve, Françoise Dorléac, and Gene Kelly with music composed by Michel Legrand