Logo Musée du Patrimoine

All French heritage classified by regions, departments and cities

  2. Patrimoine
  3. Nouvelle-Aquitaine
  4. Dordogne
  5. 24150 Mauzac-et-Grand-Castang

  6. Lalinde Canal (Mauzac Lock, including the canal supply aqueduct, the upper bridge that follows it and the façades and roofs of the Mauzac Lock House)

Lalinde Canal (Mauzac Lock, including the canal supply aqueduct, the upper bridge that follows it and the façades and roofs of the Mauzac Lock House) à Mauzac-et-Grand-Castang en Dordogne

Dordogne

Lalinde Canal (Mauzac Lock, including the canal supply aqueduct, the upper bridge that follows it and the façades and roofs of the Mauzac Lock House)

    35 Rue de l'Ecluse
    24150 Mauzac-et-Grand-Castang
Canal de Lalinde écluse de Mauzac, y compris laqueduc dalimentation du canal, le pont supérieur qui lui fait suite et les façades et toitures de la maison éclusière de Mauzac
Canal de Lalinde écluse de Mauzac, y compris laqueduc dalimentation du canal, le pont supérieur qui lui fait suite et les façades et toitures de la maison éclusière de Mauzac
Canal de Lalinde écluse de Mauzac, y compris laqueduc dalimentation du canal, le pont supérieur qui lui fait suite et les façades et toitures de la maison éclusière de Mauzac
Canal de Lalinde écluse de Mauzac, y compris laqueduc dalimentation du canal, le pont supérieur qui lui fait suite et les façades et toitures de la maison éclusière de Mauzac
Canal de Lalinde écluse de Mauzac, y compris laqueduc dalimentation du canal, le pont supérieur qui lui fait suite et les façades et toitures de la maison éclusière de Mauzac
Canal de Lalinde écluse de Mauzac, y compris laqueduc dalimentation du canal, le pont supérieur qui lui fait suite et les façades et toitures de la maison éclusière de Mauzac
Canal de Lalinde écluse de Mauzac, y compris laqueduc dalimentation du canal, le pont supérieur qui lui fait suite et les façades et toitures de la maison éclusière de Mauzac
Crédit photo : Père Igor - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Temps modernes
Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1800
1900
2000
1837
Drilling decision
1838-1843
Construction of canal
1844
Opening of the channel
1879
Railway competition
1926
Disengagement of the State
1964
Tour de France accident
1992
Grant to the intermunicipal union
1996
Registration for historical monuments
2014
Tourism renovation
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

Ecluse de Mauzac, in its entirety, including the canal supply aqueduct, the upper deck following it and the facades and roofs of the eclectic house of Mauzac (Box B 199, 200): inscription by order of 11 September 1996

Key figures

Pierre Vauthier - Chief Engineer Designer of the canal plans.
Louis-Philippe Ier - King of France Critical of the high cost.
Saint Front - Legendary figure Associated with the coulobre de Lalinde.

Origin and history

The Lalinde Canal is a 15 km long side canal to the Dordogne, located upstream of Bergerac. It was designed to bypass the dangerous rapids of the Dordogne, such as those of the Grand Thoret, the Gratusse and the Gratussou, which made it difficult to navigate between the singular of Tremolat and Bergerac. These natural obstacles, combined with the private facilities (fisheries, mills) of the residents, motivated the creation of an alternative waterway.

The canal digging project was launched in 1837, with plans entrusted to engineer Pierre Vauthier. The works, awarded to Bordeaux entrepreneurs, began in 1838 and ended in 1843, allowing the opening of the canal in 1844. The latter extends from Mauzac to Tuileries, including nine locks, five lockhouses, and several bridges. Its water supply is provided by the Mauzac dam via an aqueduct.

The Lalinde Canal played a major economic role until World War II, despite railway competition from 1879. In 1926, the Dordogne was removed from the list of inland waterways upstream of Saint-Pierre-d'Eyraud, leading to a disengagement of the State for its maintenance. In 1964, a tragic accident during the Tour de France in Port-de-Couze led to the partial use of the canal. Since 1992, its management has been entrusted to the Union intercommunal du canal de Lalinde.

Among the notable works, the Mauzac Lock, its feeding aqueduct and the lock house have been listed as historical monuments since 1996. Today, the canal has a tourist interest, with a four-kilometre stretch between Port-de-Couze and Saint-Capraise-de-Lalinde, which became navigable again in 2014. Recent works, such as the renovation of the Saint-Capraise-de-Lalinde canal bridge in 2016, aim to preserve this hydraulic heritage.

The canal crosses several villages, including Mauzac, Lalinde and Tuilières, and includes spectacular works such as the Tuilières triple lock group. Its gauge, adapted to gabars of 29 m by 6 m, reflects its historical importance for river transport. After decades of decline, local initiatives seek to enhance this heritage, including through tourist walks.

External links

Page Wikipedia
Page Monumentum