# Bellac

Bellac (French pronunciation: ; Occitan: Belac) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France.
Bellac is where the French author Jean Giraudoux, writer of L'Apollon de Bellac, was born in 1882. His house has been turned into a museum.

## Geography

Bellac lies 45 km (28 mi) northwest of Limoges at the confluence of the rivers Gartempe and Vincou [fr], in the Department of Haute-Vienne. Poitiers is 70 km (43 mi) to the northwest, and Angoulême 100 km (62 mi) to the southwest. The hills known as the Monts de Blond [fr] lie immediately to the south.

## Administration

Bellac is a sous-préfecture of Haute-Vienne, seat of the arrondissement of Bellac which covers 57 communes. Furthernore, it is part of the canton of Bellac and of the communauté de communes Haut Limousin en Marche.

## Population

Inhabitants are known as Bellachons in French.

## Transport

Bellac is 30 km (19 mi) 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 Route Centre-Europe Atlantique [fr] (RCEA) and were thus at 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 upgraded to the N520/N141 routes to Angoulême and the west.

## Classifications

Bellac is classified as a cité de caractère [fr], a village étape, a station verte de vacances [fr], and a station touristique [fr].

## Notable people

* Jean Giraudoux (1882–1944), writer, dramatist and playwright, was born in Bellac
* Charles Silvestre (1889–1948), writer, winner of the Prix Femina in 1926, died in Bellac

## Climate

Climate data for Bellac (1996–2010 normals, extremes 1996–2012) :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 18.2 (64.8) | 23.3 (73.9) | 25.2 (77.4) | 30.5 (86.9) | 32.2 (90.0) | 36.9 (98.4) | 36.5 (97.7) | 39.5 (103.1) | 34.2 (93.6) | 29.0 (84.2) | 22.3 (72.1) | 17.7 (63.9) | 39.5 (103.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 8.1 (46.6) | 9.8 (49.6) | 13.3 (55.9) | 16.0 (60.8) | 20.2 (68.4) | 24.1 (75.4) | 25.6 (78.1) | 26.0 (78.8) | 22.3 (72.1) | 17.6 (63.7) | 11.2 (52.2) | 8.2 (46.8) | 16.9 (62.4) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 4.8 (40.6) | 5.7 (42.3) | 8.3 (46.9) | 10.6 (51.1) | 14.6 (58.3) | 18.0 (64.4) | 19.4 (66.9) | 19.6 (67.3) | 16.0 (60.8) | 13.0 (55.4) | 7.6 (45.7) | 4.9 (40.8) | 11.9 (53.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 1.6 (34.9) | 1.6 (34.9) | 3.3 (37.9) | 5.2 (41.4) | 9.0 (48.2) | 12.0 (53.6) | 13.1 (55.6) | 13.1 (55.6) | 9.8 (49.6) | 8.4 (47.1) | 3.9 (39.0) | 1.6 (34.9) | 6.9 (44.4) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −11.9 (10.6) | −17.5 (0.5) | −12.6 (9.3) | −3.4 (25.9) | −1.4 (29.5) | 2.9 (37.2) | 5.0 (41.0) | 3.7 (38.7) | −1.3 (29.7) | −6.9 (19.6) | −10.0 (14.0) | −12.8 (9.0) | −17.5 (0.5) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 76.4 (3.01) | 65.8 (2.59) | 73.7 (2.90) | 86.5 (3.41) | 88.9 (3.50) | 64.7 (2.55) | 59.9 (2.36) | 74.4 (2.93) | 62.6 (2.46) | 85.4 (3.36) | 97.5 (3.84) | 86.5 (3.41) | 922.3 (36.31) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 13.1 | 10.1 | 10.4 | 12.2 | 11.7 | 8.5 | 9.4 | 9.3 | 8.9 | 11.5 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 132.5 |
| Source: Meteociel ||||||||||||||