Audierne

Audierne Gwaien
Audierne harbour
Coat of arms
Audierne
Location within Brittany region Audierne
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Brittany
Department	Finistère
Arrondissement	Quimper
Canton	Pont-Croix
Intercommunality	Cap-Sizun
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Joseph Évenat
Area1	2.95 km2 (1.14 sq mi)
Population (2008)2	2,319
• Density	790/km2 (2,000/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	29003 / 29770
Website	www.audierne.fr
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Audierne (Breton: Gwaien) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France.

The town lies on a peninsula at the mouth of the Goyen river and for centuries was a fishing village, with a wide sandy beach. Visitors can take a boat from Audierne's port of Esquibien to the Île de Sein.

The harbour, formerly important to the local fishing industry, is now essentially a yacht port. Remaining of the fishery is an oyster farm, in which the delicacy can be bought. Along the harbour stretches the town's main shopping area with its cafés, bars and restaurants, crêperies, boutiques, estate agents and holiday agencies, the town hall, the tourism office, and the regional bus stop. On Saturday mornings there is a farmers' market, which serves as a meeting place for natives and tourists alike.

History

The battle of Audierne Bay, which took place on 23 August 1944, was an engagement between German and Allied naval flotillas. Three Allied warships, which had already established control off the coast of Brittany and were lurking off Audierne south of the invested fortress of Brest, intercepted and sank eight German vessels of an armed convoy. This was the conclusion of Operation Kinetic, which was an allied operation aimed at intercepting shipping and hindering German forces besieged at Brest.

International relations

Audierne is twinned with Penryn in the United Kingdom and Hattingen in Germany.

Population

Inhabitants of Audierne are called Audiernais.

Gallery

• 

  Yacht port

• 

  Goyen

See also

• Communes of the Finistère department

References

• INSEE
• Mayors of Finistère Association (French)
• INSEE commune file

External links

• Official website (French)
• French Ministry of Culture list for Audierne (French)